Mary Anne Wellington, the soldier's daughter, wife, and widow

London. Henry Collram, 1846.

THE

SOLDIER'S DAUGHTER,
WIPE, AND WIDOW.

BY

THE REV. RICHARD COBBOLD,

RECTOR OF WORTHAM, AND RURAL DEAN.
AUTHOR OF

THE HISTORY OF MARGARET CATCHPOLE."

IN THREE VOLUMES.
VOL. III.

LONDON:
HENRY COLBURN, PUBLISHER,

GREAT MA.RLBOROUGH STREET.
1846.

LONDON:
Printed by Schulze and Co., 13, Poland Street.

MARY ANNE WELLINGTON.

CHAPTER I.

O I, D ASSOCIATIONS.

OLD associations are not easily forgotten. Man
is a reflecting creature, ever measuring present
things by the past, and thinking of what he him-
self was years ago. He who reaches days of
mature wisdom, and looks even at the hand-
writing of his childhood, perhaps his first holiday
letter to a dear mother, is astonished to see the
difference of character in the writing. Is this the
same hand that wrote that formal announcement
of the happy perio'd of Christmas, when the terror

VOL, III. B

2 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

of a blow from the heavy hand of discipline, on
account of a blot, a mistake, a line left out, or a
word mis-spelt, fell upon the young mind? All
those terrors are gone, perchance the hands of the
teacher are cold in death, and yet the warm blood
runs for a while in your own, as with the freedom
of thought, you transcribe the ideas of a vivid
memory, or speak of things as they existed in your
own day.

But you cannot restrain the tear even when you
look upon the words, " dear father," or " dear
mother." They are gone ! dearest friends of your
life, they are gone, and all the associations of
Christmas, love, and fun, and frolic, the bountiful
board, the merry tale, the puzzle, the charade, the
Christmas-box, the dance beneath those dear eyes,
with all the excitement of pleasing one fair one,
whom you felt you would love with all your heart.
The tear will fall to think these joys are gone, and
that they who shared them with you are stern in
death.

Old associations are not easily forgotten. You

THE SOLDIER S WIFE. 3

remember them, reader, with intense vividness of
reminiscence ; and if your heart be good, you will
respond to the reflection, that, though lost to sight,
they are still dear to memory. Cold is that man's
Christian sympathy, who can call to mind a
mother's tender care in the hour of sickness or
misfortune, or a father's protecting hand when
youth was in its too thoughtless career, and not
perceive how the grace of God softens the agonies
of human regrets by the sweet hope of meeting
in a happier world those friends who have set us a
good example in this, who did all they could
by commending us to God, teaching us to depend
upon Him, and themselves promoting by every
means in their power, our present and future com-
fort. Blessed associations ! even in our deepest
regrets ye fill our souls with gratitude to that great
God who is the giver of all good and the friend of
the orphan and the widow !

If, reader, you can remember your boyhood, and
have felt the joy of the approaching holidays,
recall to your memory the old associations of

B 2

4 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

parent, brother, sister, friend, and companion
perhaps, too, the remembrance of some faithful old
domestic of your father's, who was your nurse, may
come across your mind and you will enter into the
spirit of a letter written by a brave soldier, who had
lost his mother, but loved her memory ; and had a
most grateful feeling of respect for a father, whom
he had never but once seen, but who had given
him that which was better than mere life or money
a good education. A son in search of his father,
would be a new work for the press ; but this is not
a fiction, and the words of him who was the actor
in the scene are more descriptive than any which
a mere inventor could pen.

" Ten Bells, Norwich,

" August 10, 1815.

" My dear wife,

" I would not write to you before the object of
my journey should be completed, and now that it
is so, I will endeavour to describe to you some of
the sensations I have experienced, in visiting again

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 5

the scenes of my childhood after all the horrors of
the late war.

" I find twenty years have made a great many
changes in the human countenance, as well as in
the face of things, which used to look so very great
to my young eye. Whether it be the grand scenes
of the Pyrenees, with their immense heights and
extensive prospects, that opened my eyes to the
magnitude of things, certain it is that I found
those very scenes which used to appear so great,
and which I expected to view in the same light,
appear so very small, as to create in me the
utmost astonishment. The market-place at Nor-
wich, which I paraded in the days of my recruit's
dignity, though exactly the same size, seemed but
a small square, and even the Castle Hill, to reach

the summit of which, used to seem to me an exploit,

i
was no more to my eye than a small knoll.

" The dear old landlady, whose kindness I shall
never forget, is not living, but her daughter still
lives in the same house. I have been to Hingharn.
Yes, I walked along that very road which I took

6 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

to Norwich, and as I left the city I thought of our
good old friend, Dan, and his word of command ;
1 Halt ! Right about face ! Heads up !' I cannot
describe the sensations which crept over my mind.
I was returning a tall, grown-up man, with a
martial eye and steady step, along a road, which,
the last time I trod it, my young steps were
without any certain end before them. How different
did I now feel ! I belonged to my King and
country. I had been in no light campaign, I had
gained experience in many a hard-fought battle,
and was well in strength of body and mind to visit
again my native land. You may be assured, my
dear, that I did most devoutly give thanks to God
for his mercies. My prayers to Him made me
walk with more manly vigour, and strengthened me
in the purpose I had in view. Norfolk looked a flat
country to me, after my wanderings in the moun-
tains ; still, every face I met told me of a people to
whom I felt attached.

"As I approached Hingham, I almost went down on
my knees with thankfulness. My heart bounded with

THE SOLDIER S WIFE.

such eagerness, as I passed the green lane of Kim-
berley Park, and thought of Lord Wodehouse's game-
keeper ! People stared at the red coat and wondered
who I was. I arrived at my uncle's cottage. Ay,
at that gate from which I, eighteen years ago,
departed. None actually knew me ! My aunt
thought it must be me ; and, I am happy to tell you
I was most kindly received by them ! My uncle's
asperity was all gone, and I was made. as much of
as you could wish me to have been. But how shall
I describe my sensations upon visiting the old free-
school, and renewing my former acquaintance with
friends whom I never expected to see again ! All I
can say is, that it has proved a most unexpected
reward, to which I had no right to lay claim. I
could gladly have fished again in the old Mere ; but
I had other things to think of. I was there on
Sunday, and joined again in worshipping God in
that place to Which my heart often reverted
when in a foreign land. The same service, the
spot sacred to the first breathings of my young
spirit, concurred to concentrate my thoughts upon

8 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

God and His goodness ; and, if I were an object of
curiosity to many, I knew it not, for thoughts too
deep to be diverted were present to my mind.

" A new window is finishing in the east end of the
church, with stained glass of great value, with the
most prominent events of our Saviour's mission.
But I was most deeply engaged in the service of our
church, and truly thankful was I for deliverance
from sudden death, when so often exposed to the
chance of it. Never did the simplicity of our form
of worship strike me more forcibly than at this
moment, when the words of my mouth accompanied
the meditations of my heart, with a perfect under-
standing of every word I had used in my youth,
which I now felt to be the support of my man-
hood.

" These things all tended to strengthen my mind
for the great object I had in view in coming into
Norfolk, and on Monday morning, I started for my
important mission. I felt as I journeyed on, that
my position was a strange one, and what the issue
might be I could not conceive: but, as I knew

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 9

that the worst could be but a rebuke, I did not
hesitate. Yet I own, my dear wife, that I felt very
strangely, as, after a walk of twenty miles, I entered

the Inn, and sat down to consider the steps I

ought to take. N is a long, straggling village,

but my father's house appeared one of the best in
the place, in which there are several good ones.
When I looked at the house, I could not help think-
ing of the crown he gave me, when a boy, and of the
kindness of his manner towards my aunt, whom
I then took to be my mother. Still, I felt much
more determined than I had ever done. Even the
siege of Badajos, terrible as it was in every respect,
did not shake my nerves or make me feel so quick
a breathing and palpitation at my heart, as the sight
of my father's house. I asked myself a thousand

times, ' Will he care about me ? What am I to him ?

He knows me not ! He has forgotten me ; and

perhaps he will drive me from his door/ All my
former pride seemed gone, and I was irresistibly
drawn as it were, from quite a different motive, to
approach his mansion. At one time I thought of

B 3

10 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

going in person ; then again of making a confidant
of some one in the place ; and, with all these revol-
ving ideas, I returned again to the inn, and sat

myself down in the bar.

" I asked the landlord several questions about the
gentry of the neighbourhood about the employ-
ment of the people, the charities of the place, and
came by degrees to speak personally of the inhabi-
tants, and at last to the very point I wished to come

to. ' What kind of man is Squire / ' He is

a good-hearted, charitable gentleman, very rich and
very generous.' I did not fail to ask, indifferently,
many other questions. ' Can you give me pen and
paper, landlord ? I want to write a note to Squire

about a young fellow whom he was once very

kind to, and who was in my regiment during the late
war. Have you any one who can take a note up to
his house ?' ' yes ! we will soon accommodate
you. You had better come into the parlour. 3

"I went accordingly, into the green painted room
where a table, with a large black waiter, and a ma-
hogany tea-caddy upon a green cloth stood on one

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 11

side of the room, a portrait of the Duke of Welling-
ton on the other ; portraits of Lord Wodehouse and
Mr. Coke, and a list of farmers forming a Saturday's
Club, hung over the chimney place. A small table
was brought to the window, pens, ink, and paper
were placed thereupon, and the worthy landlord left
me to myself, and I dare say thought me a long
while concocting my epistle ; I believe I began
three different sheets before I could reconcile
myself to the manner in which I ought to address my
father. I believe that it was the consciousness that I
was using the last sheet of paper in the house that
made me get on as well as I did. I will transcribe
my words as nearly as I can.

"'August 7th, 1815.
" < Sir,

" ' A young man, who has been in all the
Peninsular battles, is returned to his native country,
simply for the purpose of making himself known to
his father. He trusts that the testimonials herein
enclosed, from his commanding officer and others,
to whom he has been personally known for many

12 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

years, will prove satisfactory to any parent. He is

the son of S B , who married the man

whose name the writer bears ; but if all that an
attached mother has declared be true, he will not
meet with an unkind reception at the hands of one,
who was, as far as regarded pecuniary matters,
a friend to her. The writer of this letter comes not
in distress, to ask alms, or to seek the protection of
his father. He has been, and is, a British soldier,
and does not at this time want anything. Had he
done so, he was urged by his parent to make appli-
cation to his father, and was assured that his wishes
would be attended to. He comes with a desire to
perform a duty, which at one time he could
never have done, because a refractory and roving
spirit prompted his natural pride to scorn the
entreaties of a kind parent and the advice of his
friends ! Maturity of judgment, dangers, trials, and
above all things the experience of Christian feelings in
his heart, have re-called to his mind those more tender
emotions, which a soldier may be proud to cherish.
He remembers the first moment he discovered his

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 13

true father, and that father's generosity, when with
the kindness of a gentleman, and never to be for-
gotten liberality, he gave the boy who held his
horse upon the Norwich road, at Hingham, his first

crown. That boy now writes this at the inn,

and with such feelings of respect as conquer all his
past violent passions, and make him appeal to the
natural heart of an English gentleman. If he
appeal not in vain, that father will, before he leaves

N , give him the opportunity of acknowledging

in person, that he is

" ' His affectionate and dutiful son,

THOMAS HEWITT.

"'To Esq.'"

" I was a long time before I finished this letter,
though you know Iam not generally at a loss for
words. The evening began to close in before I sent
it up to the mansion. I had to apologise to the land-
lord, for my stupidity in not being able to write
without destroying his paper ; but, as he brought me
four sheets, and I was quite ready to pay for them,

14 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

of course I was welcome. I requested permission
to remain where I was, and to have a Norfolk paper,
my pipe, and my porter, brewed, as he said, in
London, from 1 malt made in that district.

" I could not read I could not eat. I did both,
however, mechanically ; my eye wandered about the
paper, but my thoughts were upon the letter ; my
mouth ate the bread, but my stomach was not very
grateful for it. An hour passed away, and I kept
thinking that my application would be fruitless :
another and another, and my heart began to sink. I
walked about the room I thought my letter over.
Was there anything improper in it ? Could he be
offended ? I began to doubt whether I ought to
have written exactly as I did : but my conscience
told me there was nothing passionate in it, and that
I had done right. I might have thought that the
gentleman was at dinner, and could not perhaps
leave his family at such a time. I found such
to be the case, for, soon after this, I heard a
rap at the front door, and a voice called out :

" < Landlord, is there a soldier here ?' ' Yes, Sir/

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 15

f Where is he V ' In the parlour, Sir. Will you
walk in, Sir? 3 and in walked a tall, handsome,
portly squire, with a blue coat, bright buttons,
hessian boots, and a cane with a gold knob on it, in
his hand.

" ' Leave us a few minutes, landlord, I want to
speak to this young man;' and he surveyed
me with a glance, seemingly of decided approba-
tion.

" ' Is your name Thomas Hewitt ?' ' It is Sir.'
' Then you may shake hands with me, young man ;
I like the spirit of your letter, and I like your
appearance.'

That moment rewarded me. It was worth all
my labour. It was sweet to me, indeed ; and, as I
shook hands with my father, I can truly say, my
dear wife, I felt as v I would my son should feel
towards myself.

" ' Now, if I were alone in the world, young man/
said he, ' you should share my house and home with
me. Why did you not make application to me before ?
I would have bought you a commission. I would

16 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

have brought you forward in your profession, and
have made a man of you. Why did you not write
to me r

" Because I thought it better to be independent ;
and something seemed to say that you would be
ashamed of me/

" So, you were ashamed of me ; and I have been
so of myself. Well, young man, pray God forgive
us both ! What now, in common justice, can I do
to serve you ?"

" ' Oh, Sir ! I want nothing at the present time ;
but I have a wife and one child in Ireland, and may
probably have a family more numerous than I can
exactly support : and, should such be the case, may I
appeal to your generosity for assistance ? I am by
no means deficient at the present time, and I never
get into debt. I am blest with a talent for music,
which brings me in more than' my pay, and I have a
good wife, who is not afraid of work, and who has
accompanied me in all my battles. She was born at
Gibraltar, and her name was Wellington. Her
father was an artilleryman, and was killed at Cadiz.
Her mother is, I believe, still living/

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 17

" ' Your wife had a good name, and I believe she
has changed it for a good youiig man ; and, if I can do
anything to serve you, I will* How long have you
been in the army ?'

" ' Eighteen years, Sir/

" ' Would you like to leave it ?'

" ' I do not think either my wife or I should, as

^

long as we can remain as happy as we are, and as
healthy in it. But, perhaps, the army may be
reduced, and as I am only second sergeant, I might
come under the reduction ; if so, I should then,
perhaps, require a friend ; or my time of service may
expire or the regiment may be disbanded.'

" ' Well ! well ! perhaps as you have been so long
in it, you had better complete your term of service,
and you will be entitled to a pension, and anything
I may then do for you, may be an additional com-
fort. What leave of absence have you ?'

" ' I have a fortnight from the 1st of August, and
one week is now gone; as I march on foot, I
must soon be journeying again to Liverpool/

18 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" < Well, young man, I am glad I have seen you,
and I shall be happy to hear more of you and of
your adventures. In the meantime, as an earnest
of my good intentions towards you, there are fifty
guineas. I insist upon your taking them, and
now, God bless you !'

"I will confess, Mary, that I could not help
crying, though I had so often been in scenes of
agony, without a tear. Oh, how different are
things which touch the heart, to those which touch
only the flesh. The gentleman for he was one,
though not a fine unfeeling one and more rough
and open in his manners, than if he had lived all
the days of his life in a drawing-room shook me
heartily by the hand, and I know his heart went
with his hand, for a tear stole down his cheek,
though his voice did not falter nor his face change
colour. Yet he sighed too,, as he said, more like
a Norfolk sailor than an easy gentleman: 'You
are a brave young fellow, and if I had been on
board a man-of-war at Trafalgar, or had been a

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 19

Picton or a Ponsonby at Waterloo, I should like
to have commanded just such a band of Britons as
a hundred like yourself. God bless you, my
boy!'

" And so, Mary, my father left me, and I had
as happy a night of reflection as a poor son who
felt nothing but the claims of nature and an honest
heart could feel. I had done right, my heart told
me so ; and not all the world could persuade me
otherwise, since I compromised no honour, but did

my duty as I ought. Next morning I left N ,

and returned again to Norwich. I know you will
think it no robbery from yourself, when I devote a
small sum to the daughter of the good landlady who
was so kind to my mother. I feel glad that, of my
own accord, I have fulfilled her wishes in visiting

my father. His present generosity will preclude any

v
application to him, unless you, my dear, or my family

may be so situated as to be beyond the pale of my
own exertions to provide for you. I shall start for
Liverpool to-morrow, and, hoping this letter may

20 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

reach you, and find you and our dear babe in
health, believe me,

" Your affectionate husband,

"THOMAS H. HEWITT.
"To

" Mrs. Hewitt,
" Sergeant's Wife.
" 48th Band, Limerick or elsewhere, Ireland."

This was the first time the H was ever intro-
duced by himself Between the plain names of
Thomas and Hewitt, though he was christened
by the full name to which he was entitled. The
writer of these pages would gladly have recorded
many things here mentioned, in a different manner;
but truth demands that in the history which these
pages profess to give to the world, when a fact is
known to be so prominent, it cannot be safely
rejected. It would be infinitely pleasanter to have
made this brave fellow the legal as well as natural
offspring of truly wedded parents, and the author
regrets that he was not so. He wishes every man

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 21

Was so. He looks not upon marriage as a sacra-
ment, but as an ordinance of God; the first the
oldest the most innocent, and therefore the most
sacred bond of unity ever ordained for man's
comfort, and not to be violated with impunity,
though a guilty world and light views of morality
and religion may induce fashionable levity to slight
its sacred institution, and to make it a mere con-
ventional compact, the dissolution or violation of
which is without deep sin.

Sorrow, trouble, and anxiety, every man will
experience in his domestic course. Happy he
whose conscience bears him out in his walk with
God, through all his trials ; and if he has a partner,
sharing them with him, who by her gentleness of
disposition, amiable conduct, and Christian piety,
sustains his integrity* she adds to his honour and
glory, as every honest man does to his head his God.

What is a walk from Norwich to Liverpool, to
a soldier who has walked from Lisbon to Toulouse?
It is but a pleasant and a smooth journey, when
it is contrasted with tlje opposition of a hostile

22 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

force pervading mountain districts and ready to
cut off every traveller who may venture upon the
way. Resolution and exertion, if accompanied
with patience and perseverance, will perform prodi-
gies. But this was no great feat to be performed
by a British soldier, who was returning to an
attached wife and a young child, after liaving been
absent upon one of the most interesting occasions
of his life.

He had seen and had been well received by his
father, and enjoyed a tranquillity of heart, to which,
comparatively speaking, he had been a stranger.
He had now found a set-off to the loss of his old
companion, Dan Long; and his heart rejoiced to
find a void filled up with a friendship upon which
he had certainly more natural claims. He was
unconscious of having done any wrong. He might
want a friend one day, and iie was now assured
that he had met with one to whom any appeal
might be made without fear. He arrived at Liver-
pool and sailed for Ireland, duly arrived at the
barracks, and found many of his old companions

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 23

glad to receive him ; neither last nor least his
affectionate wife, who had shared the toils of battle,
and now shared his days of peace.

" I am rejoiced, my dear," she said, " to find
that your reception has been so pleasant to you.
I received your letter but three days since, and I
thought you would not be long behind it. Our
child is thriving, and will, I hope, with God's
blessing, live to be a man."

" I wish it may be so, indeed ! I have been more
happy in my visit to Norfolk than I expected.
Generosity and heartiness, without any unkind
reserve, seemed to be the characteristic traits of my
father's behaviour. He did not receive me with
any affectation, but with the kindness of a man
who felt that his intentions were upright with
regard to myself ; anfl, I can truly say, I felt
respect and love for him. He has promised to
befriend me at any future time, and I hope God
will preserve him for many years. I desire not to
share his mansion with him, as long as I can do
my duty to my God, my sovereign, and your-

24 MAEY ANNE WELLINGTON,

self, in the situation I am placed in. It would be
no particular delight to me to be elevated above
my comrades, but it is a particular pleasure to me
to know that in a rainy day I may hope to find
shelter."

" I love your spirit, Thomas, I always did ; and
I have no fears that the same God who has hitherto
shaded our heads through the days of battle will
desert us in the day of peace."

Little did they think how soon they should have
to depart from Ireland, for the furthermost quarter
of the globe. But the next chapter will shefr that
she who had to follow her good husband upon land,
had not to rest long before she had to undertake
the longest voyage which the soldiers of Great
Britain have to perform.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 25

CHAPTER II.

THE BROAD SEA.

WHO can leave Ireland without regret, let him
be soldier or civilian, king or peasant, prince or
prime minister, lord or servant ! There is such an
inherent vivacity in the people, such natural talent,
such open generosity and kind-hearted philan-
thropy, the man must be without any warmth of
heart himself who can forget a people whom he
has visited as a stranger, or been recommended to,
either for private or public virtue.

It is said of the Irish, that they make their way
better among foreigners than the English. It may

VOL. in. c

26 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

be that they throw off any reserve of character
better, and invite that hospitality from others which
they are so ready themselves to shew to strangers.
It is certain that they have more tact, more address,
more smartness of speech, and are far less timid
and nervous in their use of the tongue, than their
more retired and thoughtful brethren of England
or Scotland.

There is in the Irish character, moreover, a kind of
interesting self-devotion to any cause they advocate,
which is very taking, from the zealous warmth with
which they press forward in the work. This warmth
is something like that of our continental neigh-
bours, the French, overpowering, quite over-
whelming for the time, and almost stupifies the
astonished mind of the less rapturous Englishman,
and in the Irish this warmth is more lasting and
enduring than in our Gallic friends. You may take
the professions of an Irishman, as sincere for the time
they last ; but you must take the professions of a
Frenchman for the moment, with the utmost polite-
ness, and let them pass over your head and heart

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 27

with as much indifference as you would take his
proffered pinch of snuff. Of course there are
exceptions, and the peasantry of France every
nation upon earth knows to be the most genuinely
kind and most tenderly hospitable in the world;
but the educated, the initiated, the enlightened,
the polite, all know the world and its conventional
forms too well, to admit for a moment any simpli-
city of heart or real sincerity of purpose in their
professions.

John Bull must be gulled, indeed as he is for
a time, till experience opens his eyes, and abhor-
rence of insincerity takes place if he long fails
in forming a true estimate of French manners.
God forbid that we should make an exchange
of honesty for politeness*, however pleasing. Better,
better far is it for us to undergo the sar-
castic accusation of being seen to blush when we
fail in politeness, than to be seen adepts in fashion-
able levity, without a blush for a falsehood or a
crime.

Though Ireland is hospitable, and her sons and

c 2

28 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

daughters especially engaging; yet, as wisdom is
superior to all external qualifications, long may
Englishmen cultivate its lessons, and form their
characters upon its strength.

But the narrative must not be forgotten in these
disquisitions upon other things. Our heroine and
her husband met with many attentions in Ireland.
They were respected by those who knew their
history, and she, being of Irish parents, met with
many a kind reception among her countrywomen.
Independently of these, she was respected on
account of her long, indefatigable services in the
Peninsular War. Her husband's musical abilities
brought him into notice, and he enjoyed his stay
in Ireland equally with his wife. But the 48th
were ordered to New South Wales, to relieve the
47th, then in barracks at Sydney.

" What say you, Mary, to the change ? Shall I
or shall I not apply for my discharge ? What do
you think of a voyage to our antipodes ?"

" I am ready, my dear, as I said when I first
married, to go wherever your duty and your honour

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 29

call you. You have taken the oath of service for
any part of his Majesty's dominions, and in any
foreign parts as well, so that if you intend to fulfil
your father's advice, you have no alternative but
to obtain an exchange or go yourself; and, if you
go, then I go with you."

"We have had but short rest after all our
dangers, and now we have to go to the end of the
world, upon convict duty, which is but little better,
dear wife, than convict slavery."

" Say not so, my dear husband ! If the respect
of man is worth having, wide is the difference
between a soldier and a convict. Shame, or a sense
of degradation and crime, do not accompany any
man in the performance of an honourable duty.
Nor does a man entertain any idea of wrong when,
in the conscientious fulfilment of the duties of that
station God has placed him in, he acts with firm-
ness, as unto God, and not alone as unto man. It
will be my duty to lighten the hours of your
leisure, and I do not suppose that you will be

30 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

wholly employed in keeping gangs of convicts at
their work."

"I confess I am disappointed, wife, at being
ordered so far from home. I suppose it is be-
cause we were not at Waterloo. I could not help
that ; but I ought to be ashamed of myself to need
an admonition upon duty from you. I must write
and tell my father we are going, and the long
voyage will be a good opportunity for me to fulfil
his request, by giving him a succinct account of
my past life. You must pardon my momentary
grumbling ; but, as old Dan used to say, ' Let an
Englishman have his grumble out, and he will
always do his duty/ So will I, dear wife, do
mine."

" I never doubted it, my dear, and God forbid
that I should fail to support you in it ! We have
both been wonderfully preserved in many severe trials,
and we must trust to Him who guides the winds and
waves with Almighty hand to shew us the same mercy
unto the end. We are both pretty good sailors,

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 31

Hewitt, and may improve our time on board a ship,
and be as happy as we could be in an Irish
cabin. "

" Enough, my dear, I am content ! Not a word
ought I to utter against your good doctrine ; so I
shall set about providing for the voyage, what
comforts I can procure for you and our boy."

Who would be without a good wife if he could
help it ? She will do you good all the days of
your life, support your head, and enable you to
walk among your companions with honour. Wide
is the difference between a good and a bad wife
as wide as honour and dishonour as health and
disease as light and darkness. " A virtuous woman
is a crown to her husband, but she that maketh him
ashamed is as rottenness in his bones." A stronger
epithet the wisest man could not have used. The
man who is sensible enough to value the good
qualities of mind, temper, and disposition in his
partner, above the sordid considerations of gold,
will ever honour and cherish her, as he would his
own flesh.

32 MART ANNE WELLINGTON,

A soldier, yes, a common soldier, and only in
the band of his regiment, may have as high a sense
of honour and love, as the greatest lord of the land.
He may not be compelled to go the same lengths
of murder, manslaughter, or as it has been some-
times called, justifiable homicide, as the officer of
his regiment conceives himself called upon to go,
to prove that his honour is not to be doubted. It
would be a fine sight to see common soldiers fol-
lowing their officers' examples, and meeting each
other in the deadly duel, to prove their honour !
The great General would soon put a stop to such
proceedings, by executing martial law upon the
fiery young fools. Surely then there ought to be
a law sufficiently strong, to control men of the
highest rank and highest sense of honour from such
madness. The man who wilfully insults another
is himself a coward, let his size, rank or wealth be
what it may, and ought to be consigned to con-
tempt, and not to the notoriety of a bold exploit
of mad passion, a direct violation of the laws of
God. But honour was a mutual trust between our

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 33

heroine and her husband. They had perfect confi-
dence in each other through their long career of
danger, and afforded a lesson of mutual respect,
well worthy of any man's approbation.

The regiment was ordered on board. Colonel
James- Erskine, the commanding officer, was a man
well adapted to keep all his junior officers and
soldiers in good heart, through a long and tedious
voyage. Remarkable for an intelligent mind and
for literary pursuits, he encouraged in all beneath
him the cultivation of letters, which tended greatly
to lighten the burden of confinement on board.
His society was always to be desired, and was always
enjoyed by those who felt his superior attainments.
At the same time he was ^ disciplinarian, and his
orders for muster and for deck duty, were as strictly
observed on board the Matilda as were the orders
of the Captain of the vessel to weigh anchor,
unfurl the sails, and keep a good look out ahead,
whilst he steered through the Irish Sea from
Dublin Bay into St. George's Channel, and away

c 3

34 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

into the broad Atlantic, for Sydney, the port of his
destination.

Two hundred privates on board, besides the band
and officers, women and children, and the crew of
the ship, formed a great society assembled in a small
compass. It requires good generalship, as well as
good management, to keep so great a number of
men in good order, good health, and good humour
during a six months' voyage; and those officers
deserve the highest respect, who take the opportu-
nity of such times to improve the minds of those
placed under their care.

The first few days at sea, in a crowded ship, as
every one knows, are sufficiently stirring not to
require much interference. Sea sickness and its
consequences are felt by most ; but, when this is got
over, the stomach and brains begin to get accus-
tomed to the rolling motion of the vessel, and to
preserve their equilibrium. When, day after day, no
sight is to be seen but sky, and cloud, and water ;
when the vessel is out of the reach even of sea-
birds, and the dull monotony of the seaman's call,

THE SOLDIER S WIFE, 35

either of the lead or hour, makes the time move
heavily ; then is it that the minds and hands of the
men require the superintending vigilance of an
intelligent officer, to give a stimulus to employ-
ment.

Colonel Erskine was peculiarly happy in varying
the different duties which he required, and in such a
judicious manner as to make the crew take an
interest in the proceeding.

The hour of muster was early, the exercise regular
and not annoying. He encouraged scholastic attain-
ments, and rewarded our heroine's hushand for his
exertions in teaching reading, writing, and arithme-
tic. He had a certain hour for the practice of the
band and took great interest in its advancement,
and, when the weather permitted it, a general pro-
menade on deck.

He encouraged every species of mental as well as
industrial employment, so that the Matilda was a
floating scholastic institution, in which soldiers
learned the use of their heads and hands, in acquir-
ing knowledge, which proved of the most essential
service to them in after life.

36 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

The soldiers* wives and families were equally
attended to, and harmony was preserved on board
from the day they left the Channel, to the day they
entered Sydney Cove. Not that they encountered
no storms ; but the internal regulations of the ship
were so well observed, that but one soldier, one
child, and one female, died on board.

Hewitt formed a party, which he called his
students, and took great pleasure in reading aloud,
at a certain time, morning and evening, a portion of
the Sacred Scriptures : in five months he had
read the Bible through, and, in seeking to instruct
others, gained himself the greatest and best insight
into those concerns which fortified his mind in
many an after year.

It was here that he wrote the history of himself
and his wife, and copied it and sent it to his
father after his arrival at Sydney. It is strange
that it never reached him ; nor did the various letters
which he wrote ever reach that parent's hands ;
he remained in ignorance of his son's move-
ments, and, though he heard that his regiment had
sailed for Australia, yet he knew not whether the

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 37

young soldier, who certainly pleased him, was alive
or dead. He might feel slighted also, and was hurt
at the seeming neglect of the young man.

Our heroine had a serious accident when the
vessel was off Rio^ Janeiro, at which place they
touched upon the passage, to take in supplies.

She was on deck, teaching her young son to walk,
when, just as she was in the act of giving the child
a little water, the vessel gave a sudden lurch, which
threw her suddenly down upon her left side, and
bruised her so much as to create alarm for her
life. A premature confinement with her fourth son
was the consequence, and it went so hard with
the mother, that her life was at one time despaired
of.

Then might be witnessed what a real friend is
true affection ; for it does not desert you in sickness,
but takes the warmest interest in your comfort
when you are unable to help yourself. The soldier's
wife was made aware of her dangerous situation, and
knew from the surgeon's manner, that he considered
there was but little hope.

38 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

"I know, my dear," she said to her husband,
" that my case is desperate, and I feel very diffe-
rently from what I ever before did ; and I can see,
both by the surgeon's manner and by the interest of
my female companions, that they consider my days
numbered. I cannot help thinking of you and our
children, and how bereft you will be without my
help. It is on this account I pray for a longer
continuance of life, if it seem good to the Great
Giver of all good, to grant my request. But if not,
Hewitt, then you and I must part ; but I trust to
meet you again, when all your campaigns are over.
I know you will love your children, and do the best
you can for them. I feel very weak."

" Do not despair, my love ! The surgeon has not
told me of any immediate danger. I will both pray
with you and read to you, and comfort you as
well as I am able. I do still trust that it will please
God to let you live some years longer, to be a
comfort to me and your chidren. I do not think he
has spared you from the horrors of war, to end your
days upon the broad sea. Cheer up ! cheer up !

THE SOLDIER S WIFE. 39

I will tell you exactly what I think, and what I
learn from our surgeon. My hopes are very lively
still, and I do not despair of better health and
brighter days."

" If it be not wrong to hope for such things, I
would gladly do so, for I have no objection to be your
helpmate for years longer, if God will permit it.
But I trust that he will fit me for either life or death,
Thomas, that I may live or die to Him, as he sees
best for me."

" That is the frame and temper of mind, my dear,
that we should all cherish. In battle we know we
run great risk of being cut off. An old man is
seldom seen in the army in time of war. If his
sinews begin to fail him, toe must give way to young
ones, and retire from the fatigues of his march. I
shall never forget our dear old friend Dan's death !
It was a lesson to us all \"

" Indeed it was, and I wish I may end my days
as comfortably as that old man did. He was faithful
to God, his King, and his country ; and, if every
soldier in England were like him, few armies could

40 MAKY ANNE WELLINGTON,

cope with them. You must read to me, Hewitt, for
I take great pleasure in my bible, and find that it
introduces me to my last and fast friend, when all
others fail me."

The good soldier did not fail to do his duty, in
cherishing his partner in sickness as well as in health.
He read to her many an hour, and conversed with
her many more upon what he read, and then gave
proof of an enlightened mind, which is God's best
gift to those who will cultivate it. It pleased God
to spare her to him this time ; and, though she ever
after felt the effects of this fall, yet she lived
many, many years, the respected soldier's wife
though she is now the unfortunate soldier's
widow.

She revived, though the child sickened. It was
baptised by the Captain of the vessel, as there was
no Chaplain on board, though two hundred and
forty souls were in that vessel. The Naval and
Military Bible Society had provided the Word of
God for the soldiers and sailors, and the Captain
was a good Christian. He strictly observed the

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 41

sabbath day on board his ship, and read the Service
of the Church to all, and also an excellent sermon
afterwards ; and in all these duties Colonel Erskine
took his share.

The voyage was prosperous, though tedious.
Our heroine lost her babe, which had been named
" Paul/' because the vessel was then at St. Paul's
Island, and saw it committed to the great deep, the
Captain himself reading the Funeral Service. The
broad sea thus became a source of remembrance to a
mother, who often thinks upon her child, and the
vast waters which roll over its little coffin. Faith,
however, points to the day when the sea shall yield
up its dead, and the faithful mother and child shall
live in eternal love. *

The broad sea was not without numerous inci-
dents, external as regarded the ocean, and internal
as regarded those who were confined in the ship. To
an active mind, every day conveys an instructive
lesson. Everything is full of wonder, and man
scarcely finds his life long enough to survey even
the natural wonders of the deep.

The fishes of the sea became objects of interest.

42 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

The flying fish, pursued by dolphins, and actually
springing, in their aerial bounds, upon the deck of
the vessel ; the barnacles, which clave to the sides
of the ship, and seemed to breed so fast as to impede
her progress. But of all things of interest, to a
soldier as well as a sailor, the capture of a shark
will not be forgotten.

In passing down the coast of South America,
several of these monsters of the deep were seen
sporting along the ocean, and now and then shewing
their single fins above the wave, as well as their long
arched tails, whenever a piece of pork or offal was
thrown overboard. Of the astonishing rapacity of
this creature, every nautical writer has given some
account. The wonder is, how the shoals of them
which are known to be so numerous around some of
the islands, both on the African and American
shores, are supplied. They appear always hungry,
and will actually fight for anything which is thrown
overboard. Woe to the unfortunate boatmen who
get capsized within their sight ; few can hope to
escape.

In one of the morning parades, the soldiers of

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 43

the 48th were indulged with a sight not uncommon
to any vessel upon such a voyage the taking of a
shark, and a monster he was.

A strong line, with a few yards of chain and a
hook attached to it, was thrown out to a formidable
fellow who had been seen for days following in
the wake of the ship. All eyes were directed to
the line, baited with a huge piece of salt pork ;
and which, as the ship dashed through the sea,
had no time to sink, but was dragged along
the surface of the waves. Now and then, it might
be seen glittering on the azure curve, and presently
springing with a jerk through the crown of the
spray, whilst two hundred men stood with anxiety
looking for the shark to*- seize the bait. A man
called out from aloft. " The biter is coming !"
He could see from his height more directly down
upon the surface of the ocean. At last, the tail of
the brute was seen dashing over the top of a wave.

" Does he look playful, Jem ?" said an old sailor
to his messmate aloft ; " or is he lazy, and rather
fine in the nose this morning ?"

44 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" I can scarcely tell you yet. He is too far off
the bait. I think he smells it. He comes on
dashing at a good pace."

" Does he ride fleet, Jem, on the waters, or do
you think he dives, and comes up again from
below ?"

" He does not go down at all. I can almost
trace his back as he comes along, and, to my
mind, he's as long as our bowsprit, and as big as
the great boat. He is quite on the top of the
sea."

"Then we shall have a nibble presently; look
sharp to your tackle, my boys \"

"Here he comes, Tom," said the fellow aloft,
and every soldier stood on tiptoe.

"Draw the line in, Sam, draw the line in, we
may as well all see the fun as have a bite at a
distance. Don't stand near the line, comrades, or
you may chance to lose a leg before you are aware
of it."

The line was now drawn close up towards the
lee side of the vessel, and plain enough the huge

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 45

monster was to be seen, watching the pork with a
ravenous eye, and playing round it, as much as to
say, "What is it?"

" Will he take the bait, Captain ?" said a young
officer on the quarter deck.

" I can hardly say whether he will or not. He
does not like to leave it, and he eyes it as if he
would have it. I have seen these creatures play
around a living victim a long while before they will
dash at him. He seems cautious ; but if the men
suddenly let go the line, and the bait sinks, we are
almost sure he means to have it when it rises again.
Let go the line, boys !"

Down sunk the bait, up went the huge tail of
the monster, and down>he followed the pork,
leaving a long streak of foam where his broad fin
lashed the wave as he went down.

" Up with it again, boys ! Now look out ! Tab*
care of your fingers ! Look sharp, sir, or he is
such a little fellow, you will scarcely see him when
he comes up."

"Up rose the bait, and came skimming along

46 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

the hollow of the wave, visible to every eye f In
another moment, the monster rose, turned upon
his side and came with a dash alongside the vessel,
shewing a row of teeth more frightful than the
sides of Gibraltar Rock. In an instant, he seized
the bait, and bore it along the vessel's course till
the line was out, and a sudden twang against the
gunwale, told that the monster had met with a
check. Too severe a one was it, however, for him
to escape. That very jerk sent the fangs of the
hook through his jaw, and he was now forced to go
with the ship whether he would or not.

A lively and interesting scene ensued. The
monster might be seen springing out of the water,
dashing at the line, and striving to break it with
his great teeth. His rage was fearful, he lashed
the ocean into a foam. He would at one time rush
ft the vessel as if he meant to fight it, at another
dash from it, as if he would break the line. He
dived under the ship, he came boiling up again,
staining the ocean with his blood, until his mighty
efforts began to fail from exhaustion.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 47

" Clear the deck \" said the Captain, " haul up,
boys ! haul up ! stand clear of his tail. He will
kill you with a blow, should he hit you. Now,
Sam, get a noose from the block, and give him a
run."

A noose was made, thrown over the monster's
tail, and the huge creature was swung on deck, to
the no small gratification of the landsmen.

" What a fearful creature \" exclaimed our
heroine, " what rows of teeth under his nose ! I
wonder how he can seize his prey. Leonard must
sketch this scene !"

"He seizes his prey by turning on his side, as
you saw him take the bait."

It was some time before the monster was dis-
patched, and any one could come near him to
examine him. As each did so, he thought how
terrible a death it would be, to fall into the jaws
of the devouring shark.

The vessel arrived in safety at Sydney, after a
six months' voyage, yet considering their delays,

48 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

the numbers on board, and the crowded state of
the ship, all were in wonderfully good health ; and
the whole regiment on board, and the crew also,
returned thanks to God for their preservation upon
the broad sea.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 49

CHAPTER III.

NEW SOUTH WALES.

NEW South Wales is one of the most rapidly
progressing countries on the face of the earth ;
progressing in the present day, in spite of the most
untoward circumstances under which any civilized
country ever advanced. Its native savages are not
extinct; its new barbarians, if the outcasts of a
great nation may be so termed, are still fearfully
numerous; and yet its society is progressing in
every virtue of cultivated life, and in the best foun-
dation of all improvement, true religion. Societies
of the first culture in England, are sending out

VOL. III. 3)

50 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

branches to carry virtue into the interior of that
country, where a family, without any of those
terrors which numbers bring along with them in
this overpeopled land, can be nurtured with the
prospect, that it is so much the better the more
numerous it is.

Agricultural labourers, of the most honest and
healthy class, are hastening to a land where exer-
tion shall reward industry with a sufficient supply.
The sinews of science, the sinews of strength, the
sinews of intelligence, are all powerfully working
for the future prosperity of Australia ; and, by the
blessing of God, she will shine with British splen-
dour, when old England has advanced to her
utmost limit, and shall be spoken of among nations,
as once the greatest of all Islands, the glory of the
Western World. God grant that the day may be
far distant when she shall decay ! It must be as
He pleases, and if he should give us the blow we
deserve, we should not be long before we fell.

Australia will, if she encourages the Faith once
delivered to the Saints, and cherishes the Truth in

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 51

her Church, rise to be a great country indeed !
Her principal port, Sydney, is one of the finest
harbours in the world, and if we only consider that
half a century has carried through that port all the
civilization of old countries, which had centuries to
make themselves perfect in it, and that now in
some things she excels the oldest nations in her
cultivated productions, what may not be expected
of her fifty years hence, should the world exist so
long? God grant that his church may flourish
as it has done here, to his own honour and glory,
and the salvation of thousands !

The town of Sydney was deeply indebted to
Governor Macquarrie's organ of order, for the
numerous improvements which he was making at
the time when the 48th landed. Till then, the
town was built any how, no order, no plan, no
wisdom in any of the arrangements for the future
health or appearance of Sydney ! Men bought
allotments before his time, and built upon them,
each man according to his fancy, without any
regard to uniformity, or any idea of regularity.

D2

52 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

In his day, a very different method was pursued.
All who built upon government allotments were
under engagement to build upon a certain plan,
which tended greatly to the beauty, as well as the
convenience of the place. To Governor Macquarrie,
the inhabitants of the metropolis of Australia are
at this day indebted for the introduction of the
greatest improvements which that country and city
have experienced.

Our heroine, with her husband, at first occupied
lodgings in Sydney, as well as many others of the
regiment, until the departure of the 47th, whom
they came to relieve.

It is a joyous time when a regiment is about
to leave a distant land, for the shores of old
England. The long voyage is considered nothing.
Vivid imaginations of things at home, as he left
them, are before the mind of the soldier, and
bring his parental hearth, his brothers and sisters,
before his eyes, and all the endearments of native
and genuine affection.

However stern may have been the duties which

THE SOLDIEB/S WIFE. 53

men may have had to perform, there is generally
a great softening of the disposition when all those
services are over, and they are about to return
to European society. Nor do they fail to feel
for those who may have to succeed them in their
career of duty.

Joy spread itself through the ranks of the 47th,
as they learned the day fixed for their departure.
The band of that regiment invited that of the
48th to a sumptuous dinner, and our heroine had
an opportunity of becoming acquainted with many
of those who were now about to return to
England. It was to one of the band of the
47th, that the narrative of the adventures of
herself and her husband was committed, to be
forwarded to Squire H of N in the county
of Norfolk. A promise had been exacted that
the man himself should deliver it; but, whether
it did reach Norfolk or not, it certainly never
reached the hands of the writer's father, for whom
it was intended. Whether that friend lost the
narrative whether he himself was lost upon the

54 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

voyage or whether any individual now living
possesses the soldier's history, it never was, and
probably never will be discovered. One thing
is certain, namely, that it never reached a parent,
who once felt warmly the affections of nature,
and was strangely disappointed at the seeming
.disrespect of his son. It is a pity, when good
feelings of nature have taken possession of the
heart of man, that any thing should embitter
those feelings. All men are sorely grieved when
their natural affections meet with disappointment.
The warmer they are, at a certain period of life,
when the judgment is not to be swayed by fancy,
the more violent is the blow which causes the
check upon the heart-strings. In nothing is a
man more sensitive than in the seeming dis-
respect of his offspring, especially when he has
promised to himself the pleasure of their ad-
vancing integrity.

Woe to the child who slights an affectionate
parent? The earth contains many pits, but the
deepest and the darkest is the fittest place for

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 55

an ungrateful or unnatural child. No works, no
sacrifices, no superstitious selfishness, will ever
soothe the conscience of one who wilfully brings
down his parent's grey hairs with sorrow to the
grave. Oh ! better is it for the happiness of a
son or daughter, to suffer any privation, and to
be humble, than to provoke the wrath or curse
of an indulgent parent. Peace can only be en-
joyed by those who seek the internal regulation
of the affections of the heart, and, the nearer they
accord with God's laws, the more permanent will
be the tranquillity of the mind, which is better
riches than gold.

Our heroine's husband cherished in his heart,
the warmest feelings of respect for his natural
parent. His esteem for him was grounded upon
the knowledge, that, before he knew him, he had
given him a good education, and after he had
known him, he had won his heart by the
generous acknowledgment of his former wrong,
and his endeavour to serve him. He would have
considered it, therefore, a most unkind part for him

56 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

to act, to neglect that father's injunctions. He wrote
to him often, told him all his family concerns, and
made him, as he thought, acquainted with all the
particulars of his history. He took great delight
in describing his long walks into the bush, and in
informing his parent of all that was worthy of
notice in the colony and the country ; and many
were the descriptive anecdotes which he wrote, both
of the colonists, the convicts, and the native inhabi-
tants. Strange is it, that all these letters should be

lost, that none should have reached Squire H .

Had Hewitt been aware of this, he could not have
felt surprise that no notice should have been taken
of any of them.

" Your father may not chose to write to you,"
said our heroine, " from an idea that you may not be
long in one place, and consequently that his letters
might be lost ; and may it not be, that your letters
have never reached him ?"

" I cannot believe, my dear, that all have failed,
and it makes my heart very heavy at times, that I
get no answer from one who appeared to me all

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 57

generosity. I cannot tell what may have caused
his silence. I shall continue to write, however,
from time to time, that I may not have to accuse
myself of disrespect. I am much more comfortable
at Sydney than I ever expected to be."

" I told you I thought you would have no con-
victs to superintend and keep to work. I am sure
Governor Macquarrie is very kind and condescending
to us; his lady, too, is a warm friend to the
soldier's wife."

Thomas Hewitt was, in truth, made much of.
He was so diligent in his application to the study
and practice of his clarionet, that it obtained him
frequent introductions into the most polite circles in
Sydney, where music was much cherished by the
Governor's lady, who was very partial to this
elegant accomplishment. Frequently was he sent
for, to accompany that lady in the best concerto
music which could be procured, and in her fashiona-
ble and crowded drawing-room this brave man was
treated with the respect due to his talents and his
demeanour. Received, as at Gibraltar, into the best

D3

58 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

society, he never threw off the manners of a truly
humble and quiet man ; was never puffed up with
applause, nor even carried beyond the balance of
propriety, by any of the attentions he received. He
sought not to shine, but to give pleasure to others,
by producing those harmonious sounds in which he
so greatly delighted. Nor did he forget to appro-
priate all he received to the welfare of his wife and
children.

He had children before he left Sydney. In 1817,
his wife had a still-born child, and was very kindly
treated by many ladies in Sydney, to whom her his-
tory was well known. In 1818, was born Absalom,
the sixth son of our heroine. He grew up a fine,
active boy, in the barracks at Sydney ; and, with his
elder brother Edward, attracted the notice of officers
and men of the 48th. In the year 1821, Thomas
was born ; so that our heroine had to contend with
all the troubles of an increasing family ; still, she
wanted nothing. 'Cares she had ; but she was active,
her husband fortunate ; all things went on well with
her, during the whole period of her stay at Sydney.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 59

Edward and Absalom Hewitt, used to be the
admiration of all who knew them in barracks.
Their mother was famed for her management of her
boys, in keeping them decent, orderly, and regular,
and in training their young minds to obedience.
Their father became their tutor, and brought them up
in the ways of early piety and religion. Captain
Alman, who lived close to them, and had a large
family, used particularly to note their very respecta-
ble appearance ; and was astonished to find that
their mother, with characteristic industry and cle-
verness, was accustomed to make all their clothes
for them. He encouraged them as playmates for
his own children, and always found them quick,
intelligent lads, and no disgrace to the gallant 48th.

Mr. Rogers, a young officer of the same regiment,
was so pleased with the little Absalom, that he made
him a present of the first suit of clothes which he
ever had made by a tailor ; and the circumstance is
held in grateful remembrance, both by mother and
child, to this day.

Colonel Bell was a particular friend to Hewitt and

60 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

his wife ; and, when the regiment was reduced, in the
year 1822, he would have had him remain in Aus-
tralia, instead of coming home to England to be
discharged. The news of the reduction of the
army in that year, and the consequent discharge of
many veterans, caused no little anxiety among
soldiers who had lived so long together, both in war
and in peace.

"What do you intend to do with yourself
Hewitt ?" said the Colonel to him, after it was
known that he was upon the Reduction List.

"I cannot say, Colonel. My inclinations are
strangely wandering homewards. My father, Colo-
nel, is a wealthy man, in Norfolk. I ran away
from school and enlisted in Norwich, and did not
see him, or hear of him, or from him, or he of me,
until I had gone all through the Spanish campaigns,
and returned to England. He received me very
kindly after this, and promised to be my fast friend
in need. He has no other child living, and I
think I ought not to neglect my own claims upon
him."

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 61

" Most assuredly not, Hewitt. But how is it,
that, after you once returned a young prodigal, he
permitted you to leave him again for this far
country ?"

" He thought it best that I should complete my
time in the army, and then appeal to him after I
had my discharge."

" I think it very strange, my brave fellow, that
having but one son, and being reconciled to him, he
should permit you to remain a common soldier, and
to come so far away from him. I do not understand
exactly, what to advise under such circumstances."

Hewitt here explained to him his exact position,
and the Colonel very warmly urged him to remain
where he then was.

" This is a fine country ; many of your old com-
rades are going to remain. You have an established
reputation here, and I think you may find yourself
disappointed at home. But what says your wife ?
Women are good judges in the time of domestic
doubts."

"I have not mentioned the matter to her yet,
Colonel, and I know not exactly her mind; but
I think it will incline to return."

" It should be after years of prosperity. I think
you have a good chance of doing well here, and a
very doubtful one at home ; but I can only wish you
well, Hewitt, and give you my advice to remain in
Australia."

The same advice was given him by Sergeant-
Major Hines, who greatly respected both him and
his wife, and would gladly have had them settle in a
country congenial to industry, steadiness, and tem-
perance ; congenial alas ! too much so to those
very opposite vices, idleness, immorality, and
drunkenness : but these never thrive in any coun-
try ; the former alone ensure prosperity.

" What say you, my dear wife, to going back to
England again ? We have our choice. We have
more ; we have a premium to remain here. Shall I
accept it or not ?"

" What says your own heart, Hewitt ? I am

THE SOLDIER S WIFE. O3

content to remain here, if you are ; but, should you
refuse the present chance of returning, free of all
expense, would you not regret the opportunity when
it is lost ?"

" Colonel Bell recommends my stay. My good
friend Hines says, stay. The Governor's advice is
stay ; and, though I do earnestly wish to see my
father again, and am sure in my own mind that he
would receive me kindly and fulfil his promise, yet
all judgment seems to say, remain where you are. If
I could be sure of my exact position in my father"
love, I would not hesitate a moment ; but I confess
I wish to return/'

" Then why should you not ? I fear you will
only fret yourself about the opportunity, after you
have lost it. I know your mind well, Hewitt, and I
can most sincerely bless you in my heart. You have
always had a longing to see your father again. I
am sure you do not want to be idle, or dependent ;
but you feel that hard work in the bush, clearing
new ground, and toiling all day upon the land

64 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

would not be so suited to your disposition, as the
chance of providing for us by your talents; and
you think home is as good a field for you, with the
chance of what your father may provide, as this
distant land. Is it not so ?"

" You have exactly spoken it, my dear. Such is
my opinion, and I pray God I may be right."

" Then I would never doubt it, my dear. I would
at once accept ship, and return. I am ready to go
back again with you. God is able to provide for us,
as well at home as in this land. I see no reason
why we should not ask his blessing there as well as
here. All the earth is His, and so are the inhabi-
tants of it. Australia will be dear to our memories,
and perchance, some of our children may come to
this land. God bless the good Governor, and his
lady, and all our friends here ! I love old England,
and shall never sigh to come back to this country,
though I own I love so many things in it. Cheer
up then, my husband, and as our dear old friend
Dan used to say, ' Look the wolf well in the face,

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 65

daughter, as you once did, and you will get over any
difficulty/"

" Up then, and let us take leave of our friends ;
for the ship is in the bay, our old comrades are
getting their traps on board ; and so, my dear, we
will be over the waters to merry England. Adieu !
adieu ! adieu ! Farewell to kind friends, warm
hearts, kindred souls, and good companions. Fare-
well to friends high in power, and ornaments to the
land they dwell in. Farewell to the rich saloon,
where admiring ears have listened to the dulcet
sounds of the soft piano, and the swelling notes of
the accompaniment. Farewell, Sydney barracks,
where soldiers have enjoyed much attention, and
have been respected by all classes. Farewell, thou
land of future, promise, though of much future
sorrow, where the uphill work of religion must have
much laborious toil before, ' the crooked paths can be
made straight, and the rough places plain ; J where
the desert, in time, shall blossom as the rose, and
the sunny wilderness become a fruitful country.
Farewell !'*

66 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Such were the words which the brave soldier
wrote in his memorandum-book, as the vessel
weighed anchor, and left a land, where for six years
he had rested in respect. His wife and children
were on board. The young ones wept for the land
where they had spent their infant years, and would
gladly have returned. But the sails were unfurled,
and spread to the breeze. The old ship for she
was an old voyager creaked under her way, and
the veterans in her were like herself, weather-beaten
hulks of many a hard-fought fight. Time for them
the reader will say, to cast anchor, or to come to
their moorings.

Our heroine had her youngest child in arms. She
had an affectionate husband, and she put her trust
in God. She prayed for a safe voyage ; and, not-
withstanding all the dangers that attended a leaky
vessel, notwithstanding that, in a tremendous storm
in doubling the Cape, one of the beams of the old
ship started, and the water, as she described it, came
gushing in like flashes of lightning; and though
the horrors of shipwreck once stared them in the

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 67

face, yet, by the blessing of God, she arrived at the
mouth of the Thames with her husband and family
in good health, and was landed late in the evening
at Gravesend.

MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

CHAPTER IV.

ENGLAND.

OUR heroine landed at Gravesend, and Sergeant
Jones, who had the care of the party, obtained
billets for them; but, as they landed late, and
the houses were closed, the landlords refused to
admit the soldiers ; so that, upon landing in their
own country after so many years' absence, their
first reception was inhospitable in the extreme.

" Is this merry England we talked of, Hewitt ?"
said our heroine, " and is this the way they treat
us ? "We were much better used in France. Our
enemies would not let us stand shivering in the
cold, all night/'

THE SOLDIER'S WIPE. 69

" I am disappointed, my dear, and this is indeed
but a very unfavourable omen for the future. "We
are certainly unreasonably late in our application
for admission; but coming as we do from the
extremity of this habitable globe, it is cruel of these
citizens not to admit us. We cannot, however,
compel them, and we have no alternative but to
wait patiently for the morning. I will try what I
can do to get the women and children admitted.
I care not for myself, but I do not like to see you
freezing in the streets all night."

It was not without much difficulty, that the
women and children obtained quarters, and the
men had positively to bivouac in the streets, until
the hour of compulsory admission, at which they
could not be refused.

But orders were given for the regiment to move
on to Chatham; so that no opportunity was
afforded to make the amende honorable to these
brave fellows. It did not give our heroine a very
favourable opinion of Englishmen. She knew that
the Boors of Africa would rise at midnight to

70 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

welcome a stranger that the Arabs of the Desert
would not deny the claims of hospitality, and that
in every other country under the sun, the door
would open at any hour to the brave defenders of
the land. But here in England, the veterans of
the Peninsula were denied a night' s lodging.

Oh, beast not, England, of hospitality ! It is all
very well with introductions for. the sake of pride
or courtesy ; but in what part of this island does
the stranger or the soldier find an open door and a
hearty welcome, though he may have spent his
best years in fighting for the security of those very
men, who deny him a shelter in his necessity ?
How many may read these pages by a cheerful fire,
with all the comforts and endearments of a happy
home. They may shudder at the accusation of
want of hospitality; but that shudder will not
prove this assertion false, that in the year 1822,
the voyagers from Sydney who landed at Gravesend
had to spend their first night in the open streets.
It is to be feared that an angel, were he to come
unawares upon many of our snug habitations,

THE SOLDIER S WIFE. 71

would find but a sorry welcome, and be directed
to the Union House for entertainment. He might
find an open door in some charitable cottage, but
fhe mansion would not admit him to its kitchen.

After having spent some days at Chatham, a
severe misfortune overtook our heroine, in the
visitation of one of her children with brain fever.
Night after night did she wait upon the delirious
child. Three surgeons attended him, and ten days
and nights the mother changed not her clothes,
but watched the poor sufferer with anxious eyes,
till it pleased God to remove him from this world
to a better. Her eldest son, Edward, at nine years
old, a fine intelligent fellow, born in the 48th, thus
died and was buried, at Chatham, to the great grief
of his parents. This was the precursor to days of
sorrow and sickness, in which our heroine had to
fortify her own mind, and her husband his also,
with the best consolations of religion. Soon after
this occurrence they were ordered to Chelsea,
where, after twenty-seven years of active service,
Thomas Hewitt was discharged, a pensioner of

72 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Is. l^d. per day, and had to commence a new kind
of life for a veteran soldier.

"You had better remain in Chelsea, my dear,
whilst I journey into Norfolk, and see my father
again. Surely, surely he must have had my letters,
and I feel a strange presentiment that his heart has
been hardened against me; but I will seek him,
and at once discover where the fault may be.
Your own health is not good ; our late bereavement
has unstrung your nerves, and time and rest are
required to set you up again."

" I should wish to go with you, but perhaps you
will be best alone upon such an occasion. My
young child requires care, and after a month or so,
we shall be able to join you. I pray God to prosper
you. We feel very strangely out of the army, after
so long a habit of discipline in it."

" It will never do us any harm, if we can only
find some active employment at home. The wakeful
habits of a soldier, his cleanly appearance, and
readiness to do his duty, will be no drawback to
any future exertion. We have had but little

THE SOLDIER S WIFE. 76

comfort since we returned to England. Still, my
dear, we have very many blessings to be thankful
for. I do not despair, and will soon let you know
the result of my journey. England has yet room
for us, and we must not be discouraged at our first
misfortunes."

The young man, for he was still but thirty-nine
years of age, was not long before he again set foot
in his native county of Norfolk; and he lost no
time in proceeding to the very spot in which he
first met his father.

The same inn, the same landlord, and the same
table, found the son engaged, though in plain
clothes, in writing a letter to his parent, just as
that parent passed the window. In a moment he
was in the street, and accosted him with breathless
haste and much anxiety.

" Sir," cried he, "I amreturned to England again !"
and he paused to take breath, whilst the gentleman
viewed him with the utmost astonishment, saying :
" And pray, Sir, who are you ?"

What were the feelings of the son at that

VOL. III. E

74 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

moment, no mortal can describe. He could not
even attempt to put them upon paper. That father,
who but six years before had acknowledged him, not to
know him now! A strange revulsion came over
his frame. He was wounded more severely by that
blow, than by the enemy's sword. He was smitten
to the heart, as if an arrow of ice, with suddenly
piercing point, had carried a chilling blow to the
centre of life. And is it for this, thought he, that
I have come over from Australia ! to meet with a
cold repulse not to be known to be denied by
my own father ! nature, nature, how art thou
changed! The question was again put: "Who
are you, young man ?" and convinced him that it
was no intentional denial of a knowledge of his
person.

" I am Thomas Hewitt ; your son, Sir !"
It was now the gentleman's turn to be surprised.
He was agitated. He turned pale, and with much
trepidation desired him to go back into the house.
He followed him into the room.

"I really did not know you, young man;

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 75

your sudden salutation, in a costume so different
from that in which I last saw you, prevented my
recognising you ; and yet I ought not to have for-
gotten the voice. I have been very ill since I last
saw you, and I had no idea you were alive. Why did
you not write to me ? Where have you been ? You
promised to let me have a full account of your life ;
but not a word have I heard of you."

" Oh, Sir, how grieved I am ! I wrote to you
from Ireland I wrote to tell you of my regiment's
departure for Australia ; and, on board the Matilda,
I employed my time in writing the history of my
own and my wife's adventures. I sent the same
by one of the band of the 47th, who promised to
deliver it at your door/'

" Strange, strange ! I never saw it ! I never
heard of it ! You say you wrote many times. Did
you direct your letters properly ?"

" I did, Sir, according to your own direction. I
wrote at least twenty times from Australia, and can
have the testimony of my Colonel, who countersigned
my direction for me."

E 2

76 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" I must make inquiry into this. Where is your
regiment now ?"

" Part of it, Sir, is returned to England to be
discharged. I am one of the number, and being
2nd Sergeant of the band, I was within the list of
reduction."

" How long have you been in the regiment ?"

" Twenty-seven years in active service, Sir."

" Then you ought to have been promoted."
" Alas ! Sir, promotion is but a slow march, in the
band. We are too often overlooked in many things
by the higher powers, and too often thought only
fit for parade duty ; but there are many who have
found us most serviceable to them when they were
unable to assist themselves. I have been in many
battles, side by side with the bravest, and have not
flinched from the duties of a soldier."

" What pension have you ?"

" One shilling and a penny-halfpenny per day."

" What are your views now ?"

" You promised to befriend me, Sir, if I should
be discharged. I had the option of remaining in

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 77

Australia, or of returning with part of my regiment
to England. I thought, Sir, that I might never
see you again, if I neglected the opportunity of
returning at the expense of Government, which then
offered itself to me, and I accepted it, though, as
you will see by these testimonials, my prospects
were very fair in that country."

The young man here presented a packet of
letters to his parent, bearing the highest tes-
timony to the respectability of his character,
and proficiency in his art, and to his general
military as well as private deportment. Could
a parent receive this genuine appeal to his
heart without a warm response ? Could the cold
forms of dignity, which he had himself violated in
early life, now stand between the convictions of
nature and wisdom ? They might in some very
fashionable minds, whose cultivation will not admit
the claims of nature, and which consider etiquette
as possessing more vitality and propriety than truth
itself ; but it was not so with this Norfolk squire.
A blunt species of gentleman, carrying in his

78 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

person sufficient appearance of external pride,
without any pretensions to the extreme of
fashion, he had yet a warm heart, alive to real
natural emotions, and in honest affection he again
extended his hand to the welcome soldier, and
accompanied it with an honest Englishman's ex-
pressions.

"And you shall be welcome to England, my
boy ! You shall not come back all this way for
nothing. I will assist you. Where is your
wife?"

" She is now at Chelsea, Sir. I have lately
buried my eldest son. I have two still with their
mother; Absalom, my elder, and Thomas, my
younger."

" And what are your views ? I know not what
to do with you here. I have nothing to do myself.
I cannot comprehend how your letters were lost.
When did you write last ?"

" Six days ago, Sir, from Chatham."

" I must inquire into this. It is a mystery to
me. What do you propose to do with yourself?

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 79

A young man like you, should have some constant
and profitable occupation."

" My own thoughts inclined to settling at
Norwich, and teaching music."

" And no bad employment in these days :
Norwich is becoming a musical city. Norfolk
farmers do not reap very abundant profits in these
times, though many who have been careful in the
war, have risen to purchase the very estates they
hired, and are become great gentlemen. Come to
Norwich, and if anything should occur in which I
can promote your interest and prosperity, I will do
so. I had given you up. I felt hurt at your
negligence, and I cannot now account for the
strange failure of your letters. Rest here until the
morning and I will see you again, and so, good bye
for the present."

Father and son parted better friends than might
have been expected, to the very great joy of the
latter. Nor was their meeting less cordial on the
morrow.

" I have- thought of you all night, young man,"

80 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

said Mr. H "and I have hinted at my suspicions of
your letters being purposely kept out of my sight.
To avoid this, for the future, when you write to me,
follow this direction, and I shall receive them. I have
brought you again the sum I gave you before,
and when you have arrived with your family, and
have settled yourselves in Norwich, communicate
again with me, and I will arrange something per-
manent for your support."

They took a mutually respectful leave of each
other, m which there was more true affection than in
many between those who are more constantly in each
other's sight. "With a heart much relieved from the
pressure of doubt, Hewitt departed from Hingham
and staid a few days with his uncle and aunt. He
wrote to his wife, giving her a description of his

unexpected success at N , and requesting her

to come to Norwich, and he would meet her at the
Ten Bells. In the meantime, he himself went to
that city, to see what he could do in his profession
of music. He obtained an introduction to Colonel
Harvey, who took much notice of him, and intro-

THE SOLDIER S WIFE.

81

duced him to other gentlemen. The Rev. Mr.
Elvin was very kind to him, and so was Mr. Pat-
tison, the great brewer.

His wife arrived in the city of Norwich in the
latter part of the year 1822, and found that her
husband had secured lodgings for her and her
family in Ber Street.

These were some of the happiest days she had
experienced for some time. Her husband, by
degrees, obtained an established reputation in the
city. His father, with whom he had another inter-
view soon after the arrival of his family, definitively
promised him .30 per annum, assuring him that he
should receive it regularly at the quarter, and that
as long as he, Thomas Hewitt, should live, it should
be paid punctually. Independently of this allow-
ance, he made him many presents, which enabled
him to bring up his family decently.

" So England, my dear, is, after all, a comfortable
country ;" said our heroine to her husband. " Our
young ones thrive in it, and we have no reason to
complain."

82 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" I have none, my dear, none whatever, thanks
to God's goodness, both in giving me support and
in giving me you to help me through life. I like
having my time fully occupied. I have this day
been offered a situation which, I think, I shall
accept, as it will not interfere with my pupils, or
with music. It is the situation of watchman, under
Mr. Yarrington, the Master of the Watch Com-
mittee. I am so well accustomed to duty, that I
rather think I should like it. It will help us too
to provide for our children's wants."

" Accept it, if you please, and I hope you will
give satisfaction to your employer. It is some-
thing like sentinel duty, and puts me in mind of
soldiery again."

Hewitt became accordingly watchman to Mr.
Yarrington, Sen., who was much struck with the
intelligence of the man, and placed the utmost
confidence in his integrity. From him, Hewitt and
his family received many kindnesses. He soon
discovered the superior qualities of his watchman' s
mind, and took a lively interest in conversing with
him upon the subjects of his campaigns.

THE SOLDIER S WIPE. OO

The following letter, received from this highly
respectable man, will justify the Author of this
narrative in giving it to the public in this place.

" St. Simons, Norwich, January 5, 1846.

" Sir,

" In answer to your inquiry respecting the late
Thomas Hewitt, it is now about twenty years since
I first knew him. It was soon after he was dis-
charged from the army. He was then very anxious
concerning his prospect of obtaining a livelihood for
himself and his family. I soon discovered him to
be a man of intelligence, far beyond most men
moving in his sphere of life. I advised him to call
upon the late John Pattison, Esq., one of the
Aldermen of Norwich. With that gentleman I
had several interviews relating to Hewitt.

"I informed Mr. Pattison that Mr. H

of , was Hewitt's father. Mr. P., knowing

Mr. H , succeeded in obtaining a consider-
able allowance towards his maintenance, and many
favours during the time Mr. H was living.

84 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" Hewitt was a watchman under me; but, finding
it did not agree with his health, he was obliged to
give it up. I always found him a man that might
be trusted, and my firm belief is, that he was a man
of the strictest integrity.

" I remain, Sir,
" Your obedient servant,

" H. YARRINGTON.

" To the Rev. Richard Cobbold,
" Wortham Rectory."

THL SOLDIER'S WIFE. 85

CHAPTER V.

EVERY man's life has its changes. No day is like
the one gone by. Every one brings with it some
dissimilarity. A wise man has said, "There is
nothing new under the sun " but, as everything is
growing old, even the world itself, so must every,
thing be changing ; and if, from change to change,
we are proceeding in our course, may God grant
we may go on changing for the better, till
we come to our last change, and be happy for
ever !

" I find my time fully occupied, my dear," said
Hewitt to his wife ; and I know not what it is to be

86 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

idle. Our boys are growing up, and begin to read well.
Absalom is at the top of his class, and Thomas
begins to know his letters. I want but a few more
pupils, and I think we should be able to lay by a
little."

" I am, indeed, happy, my dear, comparatively
speaking, and enjoy the rest which God is pleased
to give us from the toils and dangers of war ; and, as
long as you have your health, and my fingers can
work, our children shall not want for decent cloth-
ing, nor for such education as we can afford. You
will probably soon have some more pupils. Mr.
Yarrington is very kind to us ; but I sometimes
wish that this night-work could be dispensed with.
What with blowing the clarionet in the day,
keeping watch at night, and teaching the Sunday
school on the Sabbath, I am afraid your lungs
may be affected."

" My Sunday occupation is the pleasantest part
of my work; and, as Mr. Valpy's health is not
good, I have double pleasure in assisting our clergy-
man, and in instructing the young. Children are

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 87

like soldiers : they require to be taught in
companies, and to be drilled into discipline by one
who understands training. I find, from my constant
habit of teaching, that they look up to me, and obey
me. It is curious that, after so many years of war,
I should at last be engaged in the peaceful service
of the Church of England. This is a change,
indeed \"

It was one perfectly congenial to the mind of this
brave man, who, having made very early improvement
in his own studies, was then happily engaged in con-
veying Christian instruction to the young. In
1825, the Rev. Mr. Valpy, in whose service he was
so pleasantly employed, died ; and, with the change
of pastors at St. Simon's, came change of master
for the school. So that this profitable Sabbath
employment, was changed from a public one to the
more private instruction of his own family.

This was an eventful year of change to our
heroine. After having seven sons, she gave birth
to a daughter, adding to her domestic comfort as well
as to her family cares. But a more singular event

88 JIARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

occurred soon after her recovery from her confine-
ment. A letter arrived, announcing the existence of
her mother, and not only her being alive, but that
she was on her way to see her at Norwich.

It is an event, indeed, after seventeen years, to
see an affectionate mother ; and, let a person's cir-
cumstances be what they may, if natural affection
be not extinct, the heart must indeed rejoice ! Who
would not give, ay, all things, to see again the
loved face of his childhood, to see the bright smile
of approbation, to press again the warm hand of
affection, or to interchange the soft kiss of parental
and filial regard ? Away, coldness ! away, ye cruel
forms of a heartless world, or damp chills of fashion !
A fond mother's face, after seventeen years' absence,
must melt the heart of a man, arid try him tenderly,
whether he be a child of God or not. If a child of
God, he would fly into that mother's arms, and
bless God for the inexpressible joy of such a
moment. Let the fanatic assume what high at-
tachment he may to his own faith, he would not
be to be envied, if he could see his mother, who

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 89

gave him birth, who taught him his first prayers,
watched his cradle, and yearned over him with the
bowels of compassion ; he would not be to be
envied, if he could see her after seventeen years,
and be unmoved.

It was not likely that the genuine heart of affec-
tion which our heroine possessed would fail to feel,
ay, more than any pen of man can describe, when
her loved parent entered her abode.

Each could but look at the other, and see the
changes that time had wrought. Seventeen years
before, and the bloom of youth sat on that
daughter's cheek ; the cares of the mother had
come with her womanhood, but she had never lost
the affections of a daughter. And this may be
one reason, reader, why now in her widowhood, her
own children have never ceased to bless her and
respect her, to treat her with the warmest affection,
and in her poverty and distress to spare all they
can for their mother's comfort.

A month did her mother stay with her, and with
Hewitt and her daughter talked over the early

90 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

days of their youthful affection, of the changes at
Gibraltar, and her own change of condition. After
she had lost her husband at Cadiz, and her only
son, she was very lonely, and being still an active,
and by no means otherwise than a goodly person,
she married a comrade of her husband's, a
Cornishman, who, after serving his time in the
Artillery, retired with a pension to Guinear
in Cornwall, about twenty miles from the
Land's End. At very advanced ages, this old
couple, Thomas and Fanny Williams, are still living,
as appears by a letter from them to the heroine of
these pages, dated March 25th 1845, with this
postscript.

" N.B. When you direct,

" Direct for Thomas Williams,

" Pensioner,
" No. 99, Tallywarren Street,

" Camborne,

" Cornwall."

Twenty letters from them, now lie before the
author of this narrative, all breathing the purest

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 91

affection and respect for our heroine and her
family.

The mother, after a month's stay, returned to
her husband in Cornwall, and it is now twenty
years since that visit was paid : times have
wofully changed since then with her daughter,
though their mutual affections are unaltered.

But we must trace the gradual advance of mis-
fortune, because at that time there was no apparent
occasion to dread any. Yet soon after this, we find
that they left Norwich. There had been a name-
sake of Hewitt's in the band of the 48th, who had
always been upon the best terms with him. As
he had served his time, and returned to live at
Aylsham, his native place, he came to beat up his
quarters, and staid a few days with our heroine.
Those few days stirred up the former taste for
soldiering.

" What say you, Hewitt, to another campaign ?
After all, we are best fitted for soldiers. I have been
requested to seek for some veterans of the Penin-
sular campaign, to join the Norfolk Militia. Now

92 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

you and I had a pretty good share of the foreign
wars. What say you to being on the peace esta-
blishment at home ?"

" I must think the matter over, and talk it over
with my wife,; \ve are well off here, and the old
proverb, ' Let well alone/ may indispose her mind
to changes. I see no objection to it. The pay is
good, and the duty not very heavy. I will talk it
over with her."

They did talk it over, and our heroine saw no
objection to the plan proposed. She thought it
better than the uncertainty of pupils and the
watchman's place ; besides, the place to which they
were to go, was at no great distance from Norwich,
and they might still keep up their connexion in that
city. Upon the whole, she approved the change,
and Hewitt and his namesake entered into the
Norfolk Militia and became active non-commis-
sioned officers, under the command of Captain
Guthrie, at Yarmouth.

Hewitt went over to N to communicate the
change to his parent, who again treated him hand-

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 93

somely, and gave him money to pay all the expenses
of changing his place of abode, assuring him again
of his great respect that his income should be
punctually paid to him, and that he would take care
that it should be insured to him for his life.

It was a change to our heroine again to see her
husband in uniform, and to find that he was a
peaceful soldier of the militia. She and her young
family removed to Yarmouth, and took up their
abode near the Apollo garden walk. Here they
lived for fourteen years, not without many changes ;
for though the militia was for a time made strong,
yet after a few years it was disbanded, and Hewitt had
to return to teaching music again. One effect, how-
ever, which his present appearance as a soldier had
upon his young sons was, that it gave them a partiality
for a red coat, which they never got over, notwith-
standing the kindness of many friends who would
have had them choose some more peaceful occupa-
tion. Some quaker ladies were very kind to the
boys, and took great notice of them, and in many
ways befriended them.

94 MAEY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Hewitt, in 1827, was engaged to play the third
clarionet at the Norwich Festival, and here he was
first introduced to Professor Edward Taylor, who
was so pleased with his modest deportment and
scientific industry in the cultivation of music, that
he made him a handsome present of a bassoon and
other instruments, which his widow still keeps as a
memorial of the Professor's kindness.

It was with no little pride and pleasure, that our
heroine heheld her husband in the ranks of those
performers who swelled the instrumental band at
the Festival. She was permitted to go to the
rehearsals, and truly might it be said, that she and
many others enjoyed the treat with as much satis-
faction as any of the more enlightened audience
who came to see and to be seen, to hear, and to
pay for what they heard, to the ultimate benefit of
the hospital and other charities in the city of
Norwich.

Harmony has its discords, and the cultivators of
harmony frequently have jarring disagreements,
even in getting up a grand entertainment for the

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 95

public amusement. For there is as much or more
natural pride in those who have to play before a
great audience, as there is in those who shine in
the more retired drawing-room. The principle of
harmony is good; but, in the practice, too many
discords destroy the most harmonious sounds, and
afford anything but gratification. So, in great
public festivals, it is no easy thing to control the
minds of all the performers, and bring them under
the guidance of one conductor.

After having been a soldier a second time, and
the regiment of Militia having been disbanded,
Hewitt's father assisted him to embark in a fishing
speculation at Yarmouth; but this turned out
unprofitable. Loss of horses, boats, and various
other circumstances, over which he had no control,
rather tended to involve him in difficulties than
to lift him above them, and proved that a good
soldier might make but a sorry fishmonger. Still he
contrived to bring up his family respectably. He
had two more daughters born to him at Yarmouth,
Martha and Kerenhappuck, the latter so named

96 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

because Job had seven sons and three daughters,
and gave the last this name. But this daughter
was not the last, for his wife brought him another,
Priscilla, who still lives with her.

Eliza, after being carefully trained in Mrs.
Turner's Sunday School, was bound apprentice
to Miss Branch, the respected staymaker, at
Yarmouth, whom she served two years in that
capacity, and afterwards for five more as journey-
woman.

" I " think, father," said Hewitt's son Absalom to
him, after he was grown a fine boy, very tall for his
years, " that I should like to be a soldier. I have
always wished to be one, and you enlisted very
young ; why should not I ?"

" I know no other reason, my boy, than that I
think you hardly know your own mind yet. Were
you fated to see as many difficulties and dangers as
I have seen, I could sincerely wish you to drive a
Yarmouth traul cart all the days of your life, in
preference." ^

" Nay, father, that would be a sorry kind of life

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 97

for a soldier's son. Fancy me mounted on one
of those strange vehicles, which go upon wheels
without an axle have no seats, and no sides
all length and no breadth touch the ground
with their bodies, whilst their legs, if I may so
term the shafts, go up into the air higher than
the horses' heads. I should look well on one
of these carts ; for as to being in one, that would
be an impossibility, since they have no insides,
and, as they rattle along, look more like lumber
gims than anything else. Put scythes to the
hobs of the wheels, father, and they would look
like the first Queen of England's war-cars, of
which you were reading to us the other day, in
the History of England. Let me be a foot
soldier, and I shall be content."

The father thought the boy had some choice
of his own, and only urged him not to be too
hasty in deciding upon the point. The carts
he mentioned are peculiar to Yarmouth, and are

VOL. in. p

98 MARY AX.NE WELLINGTON,

well adapted for the narrow rows ; as the nume-
rous thoroughfares between the old sea front
and the river's face are called. No one who
visits Yarmouth can fail to note this feature of
internal traffic from the shore to the most remote
corners of the town.

If any physician wished to prescribe a novelty
for his patient, he need but send him to Yar-
mouth for a species of driving which would keep
every muscle of his frame in active motion. Let
him have to stand on one of these vehicles for
two hours in a day, and permit one of the
Yarmouth herring-men to drive it ; he would not
long be afflicted with indigestion, which, Aber-
nethy says, is the cause of all diseases.

Our heroine's eldest son, Absalom, could not
be persuaded to change his mind, but enlisted
in the 12th foot, took his departure for Ireland,
and sailed from the Cove of Cork for the Isle
of France, where he now is.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 90

His brother, Thomas, some years afterwards
followed his example, and is now a private in the
Coldstreain Guards.

Changes, changes ! what changes we all see
in the course of our lives ! Again our heroine
changed her place of abode, and went to live at
St. Martin's, Palace Plains, near the White Lion
Inn, Norwich. Her husband found many friends
to notice him. He was invited to play in several
families, and the soldier, with his medal, which
he was entitled to wear at all times, became a
noted character.

It is pleasant to look through the letters
of their children, and see flowing from their
hearts the same strain of affectionate piety
as flowed from the hearts of their parents.
It would be tediously spinning out a nar-
rative, to introduce the epistles of sons to
parents, from the various parts of the world
where they were quartered. It will be enough

F 2

100 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

for the Author to state that he has had great
pleasure in perusing them, and he can honestly
and conscientiously affirm, that they are letters
such as young men of good principles, and affec-
tionate and dutiful sons, would write to parents
whom they honoured at home, and never ne-
glected to honour, though they found themselves
in distant lands.

In writing these pages, the author is glad to
find that, notwithstanding all the changes which
visited this family, one bond of unity has under-
gone no change among them, namely, mutual
love for each other; and may God grant that
nothing may ever break it, but that with his
grace, it may be more firmly knit, till time shall
be changed for them into eternity.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 101

CHAPTER VI.

AFFLICTION.

WHO was more eloquent upon the 'afflictions
of human life, than the celebrated Kirwan, Dean
of Killala? If any man by words painted a
picture to the life, it was this celebrated preacher,
whose glowing and impassioned oratory was
addressed to the hearts of his hearers with such
an irresistible appeal, that, it is said, those
who came to scoff at his powers, went away in
tears.

102 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" The lieart of man," lie exclaimed, " is a
labyrinth, of whose uncertain ways God alone
-can have a knowledge. Though the world should
put him in possession of all its delights and all
its enjoyments, they would be insufficient to fix
and satisfy him, for he has one attachment nearly
invincibly incompatible with rest and content-
ment ; namely, an everlasting desire for change
and novelty. The love of happiness is essential
to his being. When the appearance presents
itself, he flies to it with rapidity. The moment
it commences nearly puts a period to its enjoy-
ment. What does it serve him to possess, since
he never ceases to desire ? Such is too truly the
prevailing character of man, till trouble arrives,
which brings wisdom on its gloomy wings, and
tells him too clearly he is to look for true and
durable felicity only beyond the grave !"

Pardon, reader, this serious quotation, from
memory, which the author never needed to read

' THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 103

a second time, since every line became indeli-
bly impressed upon his mind from the very
first perusal. They often spring up, when he
sees in real, every-day life, their solemn force.
He could not help transcribing them, as the
thoughts of the coming chapter moved over his
brain.

Affliction ! It is a word which thousands
cannot endure to hear mentioned but in private.
Eloquent perhaps in the deepest silence, it broods
in a language of its own over sufferings mental
or bodily, which pen cannot express. Take the
kingdom of God for a few moments out of a
man's heart, and see how he will mourn and
pour out his soul in the most plaintive melodies,
such as no earthly loss whatever could equal : as
cruel men in some countries take out the eyes
of a poor bird, that it may warble its tender lay
to the refined but heartless feelings of its listen-
ing conquerors. Does the song compensate for

104 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

the loss, when the man cannot restore the eye-
sight ? Oh, hard, tyrant man ! boast not of joys
purchased by the punishment of a tender, help-
less bird ! Were but the great God to take
from thee that blessed Comforter who cheers thee
on thy journey, thou wouldst sing a mournful
ditty to thy fellows, who would not understand
thy wailing ! Oh, be not cruel then to any
creature, and thy affliction shall never be without
a sweet peace.

Our heroine, though a soldier's wife, had a
tender heart, even in the stirring, hardening
times of war. As a mother, she had been des-
tined to feel the sorrows of life, in parting with
beloved infants and children, not one of whom
she would not gladly have had survive herself.
But she was now called upon to endure the loss
of a daughter, who was endeared to her and her
husband by the singular precocity of talent with
which she was endowed. Heaven fits, or rather

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 105

the God of Heaven and Earth fits and prepares
the young mind, with very early calls to his
kingdom ; and, though most men wish to live to
the utmost limit of human years, from that
natural tenacity to life which all creatures
possess, yet there are few parents of families of
any extent, who have failed to witness the wisdom
of those children who have been early called to
be partakers of a heavenly kingdom. The calm-
ness with which, in sickness, they look upon
things past, present, and to come, is a beautiful
lesson of family piety, almost enough to make
the strong and healthy envy the tranquil joy of
the wise and sickly.

" Mother/' said the little Martha to her
parent, " I shall never live to be a woman ; nor
do I desire so to do. Father and you are very
kind to me, and I love you dearly. Brothers
and sisters too are very good to me, and I
love them all; but still I think I shall have

F3

106 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

to leave you all I do not think I shall live
long."

What was a mother to reply to this ? The
little Martha was by no means strong. She was
a delicate, sensitive, singularly intelligent child,
whose actions appeared to be governed by a
wisdom which the ablest divines, in their most
beautiful discourses, might have inculcated. She
was a child full of thought, ever thinking, and,
like a most perfect ear, she could no more bear
a discordant word, than that ear could bear a
note out of tune.

A harsh word was grating to her ear, an irre-
verent one was shocking; but a blasphemous
one, let it be uttered in the broad street, would
make the child cling to her parents as if there
were a wild beast let loose in her way. The
father and mother observed this early delicacy,
and Hewitt, in his hours of instruction, found
his little daughter Martha receive all he could

. THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. JO?

give her, and yet desire more. Sweet thirst for
truth, whenever childhood, youth, or manhood,
shall seek to know what God has revealed for
its instruction and happiness ! Heavenly Father,
thou who callest thy children to thyself, it is a
sweet consolation that thou permittest even a
soldier, a rough parent, or a soldier's wife, a
kind mother, to give instruction to thy children,
and to know that as thine they can never be
lost!

" My dear child," said the mother, " I know
you are not of a strong constitution, and I will
not deceive you by saying that you are;
but God can do all things, and can make
your natural weakness strong with his
strength."

" I know it, mother ! I know it ! for as father
told me this very Sabbath evening, His strength
is made perfect in our weakness ; but, mother,
his strength is not bodily strength, but strength

108 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

of spirit, to love him and his goodness more
dearly than anything else."

What a speech was this for a child ! and yet
it was simply the wisdom she had perceived, and
was unanswerable. Yet the father tried hep
faith a little when he said with earnestness,
" How can you say, my dear child, that his
strength is not bodily strength, when you read
of the miraculous bodily power of Samson ? Was
not his strength merely mortal ?"

"Father, that strength was made perfect in
his weakness. He was weak enough to suffer
himself to be bound with cords, and yet in the
moment of his utmost self-abasement, he burst
them asunder. He was weak enough to reveal
the secret of God's strength bestowed upon him,
and he l^ad his eyes put out. But when his
enemies were most strong against him, and
prevailed with their utmost cruelty, he put
forth his prayer to his God, and prayed for his

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 109

strength, and down came the columns of the
idolatrous temple, and he slew more in his death
than he had done in his life. How can you call
this mortal strength ?"

Was the father able to gainsay this? The
little divine, for so he called his beloved Martha,
would have had him question her further ; but
he took her in his arms, and put an end to an
argument which he found himself unable and
unwilling to combat, and conquered or rather
prevailed with a kiss, not of betrayal, but of
exquisite affection.

Yet this dear child was to be lost to him ; and,
though he sincerely delighted in her superior
mind and joyed to see her every time he came
into his house, he felt, each time he saw her,
that she was leaving him, though she evinced
more and more warm affection for him. Could
he desire that she should remain in a world
where everything shocked her? Nature and
grace had to struggle in the heart of the parent

110 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

more severely than in that of the child. Nature,
pure, simple, innocent, affectionate, nature, in
the tender child, was part of the perfection of
God's grace, and suffered no shock in her,
because she found it part of God's love in her ;
but the parent felt his own loss, felt for the little
sufferer's bodily pains, and died in his own heart
whilst he willingly yielded her up to his Creator.

Little Martha had an affection of the chest,
which for a long while tormented her ; but she
did not complain, and rather sought to soothe
her father and mother with the prospect of her
departure than to grieve them.

" I do not like to see those tears, dear father,"
she said to him before her death, " they seem to
me ungrateful. Why do you weep ? Is it for
me ? Pray do not do so, for my departure
ought to be your joy. You read to me just now,
' Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord F
Why do you grieve then ? Have you any doubts
about my dying in the Lord ?"

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. Ill

" No, my dear child, no. I do not grieve on
this account. I am sorry to lose you so early in
life."

"And what would you have me live for,
father ? You have no mansion for me here, but
my heavenly Father has prepared for me a place
to dwell in, better than the palace of the bishop !
You can promise me no joys here, but my
heavenly father assures me there are joys ever-
lasting at his right hand, and so said the dear
bishop, when I heard him preach on Good
Friday, at the Cathedral. You can give me no
crown, yet you read to me of crowns of glory
as the reward of the children of God."

" Dear child, you speak so confidently as to
make me think you know not that you are a
sinner."

"Dear father, and would you have a sinner
doubt ? For whom did the Redeemer suffer ?
Not for me, if I had not been a sinner. Have I

112 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

forgotten how many times you have corrected
me ? I did wrong, you forgave me, because I
confessed to you my faults ; but, dear father,
I perceived that my sins were against God, and
your forgiveness could not forgive me before
Him. For that reason, I felt I wanted forgive-
ness from Him, and you told me that Christ
only could obtain that for me. In Him then
did I find it. How then can you suppose that
I could forget that I had been a sinner ? But
God forgives me, and I heard his forgiveness
pronounced at church by his minister, and took
it as such to my soul."

Could the wisest argue better ? Could the
father gainsay a word? He submitted to the
hand that gave the blow, and the dear child died
in his arms.

"Mary," said he to his wife, "that child's
death is the first nail in my own coffin. It is
not that I am so melancholy as to be without

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE.

hope for you and for myself ; but I did love that
child dearly, I did delight in her singular preco-
city, and I feel that I must go to her ; she cannot
come to me."

It was singular, but not long after the child's
decease, Hewitt's health began to fail him. He
became subject to asthma, and found that his
breathing through the clarionet and the bassoon-
were followed by a strange pricking in the throat*
He could never forget his little Martha; he
would speak of her at all times, but especially
when his children came home to meals, and
seemed to miss her society.

"I cannot rouse myself, Mary/' he said to
his wife, " I cannot rid myself of the idea, that
it will not be very long before I shall go to
her, since she cannot come to me. Let me be
where I may, that child's questions, her extraor-
dinary arguments, and her sincere devotion,
seem to press themselves upon my mind, and,

114 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

sleeping or waking, my little Martha is always
present with me."

It was not that he did not love his wife and
children with the same warmth as he formerly
did. If possible, he loved them more. He
spent more of his time at home. For, on account
of the irritation of his chest, he found it dange-
rous to indulge in his former pursuits. He was
one of the finest possible bassoon players in an
accompaniment. His ear was perfect, and his
taste extremely good ; but the bassoon is a dan-
gerous instrument for any person whose lungs
or whose breathing is affected.

An active man is very unwilling to give up
his accustomed employment, though he may
actually require rest, to preserve his health or
his life. How many a workman, with pallid
cheeks and starting eyes, has risen perhaps to
his unhealthy occupation, when nature called
out, " Keep your bed, you want rest for a few

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 115

days." Alas ! he has a wife and children,
whom he knows will call for bread, and he
cannot aiford to lose his time. So he goes to
work and increases his disease, till he can go
no longer. So our heroine's husband would go
on playing his bassoon, until he was compelled,
from sheer exhaustion, to give it up.

His active mind, however, knew no rest. He
read, he wrote, he thought, and now he con-
versed, day after day, with his affectionate wife,
upon things which more deeply concerned his
soul. Affliction brought him nearer to his God.
He saw his hand at work in the career of his
own life, and observed to his wife that it had
been a very merciful one.

" I ought to be more thankful, my dear, than
I am, for this very affliction which now prevents
my earning for you, as I used to do, such a
weekly aid as enabled us to live in comfort. But
we must soon remove to a less expensive habitation,

116 MARY ANNE AVELLINGTON,

for I feel that, as my powers decay, we shall not
be able to meet the expenses of our family
without changing our place of abode. We now
stand at a high rent, and our children require
all we can spare from our income. You and I
have known too many changes to heed a remove,
and it is better to be honest and pay our way,
than to live in misery beyond our means."

" I have no objection, my dear, to any change
which may ease your mind and render you more
comfortable. We have slept upon the bare
ground many a stormy night, and any house in
this city affords us better shelter than the plains
of Salamanca. It is nothing to me to give up
these fancied comforts, when your health and
peace are the object. Now you mention the
subject, I think our friend, the landlord of the
Ten Bells, who has known us so many years,
has some houses to let not far from him. They
are small and very reasonable, and what is the

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 117

difference between St. Martin's Palace Plains,
and the Ten Bell Lane ? I will go and see him,
and try if we can arrange about the rent. Do
not make yourself uneasy about any luxuries for
me, Hewitt ; a soldier's wife should be prepared
to more than meet her husband's misfortunes."

A woman is braver than a man in the hour
of retrenchment, if she loves her husband as
much as she does herself. What a blessing she
is to a man, if she can deprive herself of any
accustomed luxuries, to support the character of
her husband for honesty. What are luxuries,
when a person cannot afford to pay for them,
but robberies committed upon honest principle,
which in the end produce more misery in their
possession, than they could possibly do if
rejected? "Retrenchment" sounds harshly on
the ear of luxuriating pride; but those \dio
would not forfeit love for all the possessions of
pride, know well that the meeting an evil with a

118 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

good heart and a firm hand, carries with it un-
speakable joy.

The soldier's wife had no smart carriage to
lay down, no livery servants to discharge, no
horses with flowing tails and flying manes to
part with ; but she had her comforts of compa-
rative luxury to give up, which one who had
earned them after many a hard-fought fight, and
many a weary hour, was perhaps as much
entitled to enjoy, as the lord or lady of the
proudest mansion. A woman who had looked
a wolf in the face without a shriek, would not
be likely to make much lamentation about
retrenchment.

As a good wife, she soon changed the more
expensive dwelling for an humbler one, and took
up her lodging in the Ten Bell Lane, Pottergate
Street, Norwich, in a small, retired court, and
never uttered a murmur at the remove. Afflic-
tion did not leave that roof, though one outward

IKE SOLDIER $ WIFE.

cause of annoyance might be got rid of. It
required all the energies of a good manager, with
a sick husband, and herself and family to feed and
clothe, upon a pension and allowance, which, when
the earnings of an active man were added to
them, were an ample provision. Care and atten-
tion, economy and honesty, affection and cheer-
fulness, with that never desponding faith which
relies upon the daily mercies and providence of
God, made the retired lodging in Ten Bell Lane,
very soon as comfortable as the house on the
Palace Plains.

The best men in this world, at any period
of its existence, have known what it is to
be poor ; and, as the author began this chapter
with a quotation from the waitings of the wise
and eloquent Dean of Killala, he cannot better
close it than by another quotation, an example
of his doctrine, that affliction is better than
riches.

120 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

" Look to Solomon in all his glory ; the im-
mensity of his treasures, the magnificence of his
palaces, his flourishing states; beloved of his
subjects, respected by his neighbours, celebrated
and admired through every region of the earth ;
then turn from this dazzling picture of all human
prosperity, to contemplate Job, deprived in a
moment of all his earthly possessions, the
children he adored torn suddenly from his
embrace, cruelly abandoned by his relations,
basely insulted by his friends, stretched upon
the earth naked and forlorn, his body covered
with putrifying sores ; in a word, reduced to a
situation which no imagination can dwell upon
without extraordinary horror.

"Which of the two would you conceive to
have been most favoured of God ; the man whom
excessive prosperity plunged at length into the
very abyss of impurity, or he whose unparalleled
adversity became at once the proof and triumph
of his virtue ?

'OB

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 121

" I need not say what the answer of a true
Christian would be, or of any individual capable
of distinguishing the true sublimity of the
human character."

VOL. in.

122 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

CHAPTER VII.

AX UNEXPECTED BLOW.

MAN'S difficulties are attributed by many wise
men of this world, to his own want of wisdom.
To be poor, according to such men's ideas, is to
be a fool. Nay, there are some who seem to
imagine that it is the very first duty of the
Christian ministiy to teach worldly prudence,
the laying up of treasure upon earth, the getting
money somehow; and when it is gotten, the
taking care of it, laying it out so as to bring in

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 123

the greatest interest, in insurances, railroad specu-
lations, investments in land, mines, ships, canals,
and all the variety of profitable channels which
may present themselves to the eager thirst for
gain. The clergy are sometimes reproached hy
a wise brother for not taking advantage of some
of these opportunities, as if the golden grain
of Mammon were the best fruit they could
reap.

Let those rejoice in their riches who can get
and keep them ; but let not a good man despair,
though poverty may stare him in the face ; let
him not repine, let him not forget that God
provides the daily bread of the humble, and that
he will never .desert any of his children. His
purse may be very low, but let him be lowly
himself, let him be ready to give, of that lowly
spirit which he possesses, such gifts as God has
given him, and he need not doubt, that men will,
if he has patience, pour into his bosom sufficient

& 2

124 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

of the abundance which God has given them,
that he may be provided for.

Benevolence makes many rich without dimin-
ishing the possessions of the donor; and,
though it may be more blessed to give than to
receive, yet if the recipient of bounty takes that
which is given him by mortal hands, as from the
blessed instruments and agents of the Almighty,
he will never be at a loss for gratitude and will
never offend or be offended in his poverty. The
workman is worthy of his hire, and will be paid
sufficiently if he will do his work diligently;
but if he will be idle, he cannot expect the
blessing of God or man. Affliction, bodily or
mental, may deprive an honest man of power to
work, and then he becomes an object of real
compassion.

There was not a more industrious, pains-
taking, decent, and respectable couple, than our
heroine and her husband, in the line of life in

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 125

which they sought their livelihood. They had
toiled through the Peninsular campaigns with
honour, and had left the British army without
ever once incurring the slightest reprimand for
any neglect of duty; hut, on the contrary,
received many testimonials of grateful respect
from comrades and from officers who knew
them. Before the writer of these pages, lie
letters from soldiers who called our heroine's
husband their Mentor, instructor, adviser, and
friend. One of them is so characteristically im-
pressive of the fact, that it will serve by its
insertion here to shew, that Hewitt and his wife
were looked up to by those who valued intelli-
gence and integrity, though but privates in the
ranks of the British army. The author gives a
copy of the letter, and he does not fear that men
of generous minds will fail to appreciate its
merits, though it may have many literal defects.
The letter is written on a sheet of foolscap paper,

126 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

and contains a most accurately traced map, made
from observation, and which would be no dis-
grace to any officer of engineers, whose education
might enable him to appreciate its accuracy.
The author alters not a word, nor a letter, in-
tentionally. The handwriting is not bad, though
old fashioned ; still, it is a genuine production.
It is from his old comrade, Leonard.

Kingston, 9th of August, 1840.

" Good Mentor,

" I have Endeavoured to the Best of my Judg-
ment to give you a True map as far as my
Abilities Goes ; this is very True you may
Depend, for you only have to Consider that I
always had my walk Round the Lower fort once
Every Day at Least. And sometimes twice a
week and Never Missed going once a week to
the Upper Fort. And Principally to See his
Highness the Rajah of Curnool Who was a

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 127

State Prisiner in the Citidal. you shall hear
More of him in My future Letters I shall not
enter Into the Account of Bellary Untill my
Next Letter, which will be wholely taken upon
that Place. I hope you have Received the papers
I Sent you, In one was an Account of Napoleon
Trying to Poison himself at Fontenbleau. But
how to take it for Truth is Still a Secret with
me. I shall not say anything in this Letter of
our Journal more than to say, I have got a Great
Deal of Matter for your Information, Both pain
and Pleasure, I have to say that I have with my
Mrs Enjoyed the Charms of our Fair, and
Summer's Cheering Delight. But through all
our Delights I have Never once Forgotten, you
and your Family in my Jovial Glass No Hewitt
this time 31 years we were you know well, on
our half- Starved Retreat. And at the time you
Get this Letter we were I Suppose Upon Enter-

128 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

ing the Lofty But Pleasant Hills of Garasiaga,
not far from pizzaro's Native Place. However
my Friend these are all Bygone Days But Still
I Look Back, to Some of those Scenes with
Pleasure, of all the Countreys I ever was In,
Spain Certainly Gives me the greatest Pleasure
to think off, as for Portugal My thoughts Seldom
Goes there without it is to Bring to Mind our
Affair in punhetta. And some more Little
adventures. Spain is Romantic And Grand in
its Appearance Good and Virtuous People But
a Bad Government, which I think Providence
will alter, as the present times seems to foretell
some Events for Bettering Spain. In Some of
your future Letters, I should Like your opinion
upon the Present State of the World as Regards
its Warfare Position. And what you think of
England, I am Afraid She is going Down Hill.
Also Russia, Prussia, Austria, France. Our

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 129

Eastern possessions, And China, not Forgetting
the New found out Country in the South Pole
Quarter.

"I have Been Requested to Let you Know
that Mr. Becket sends his kind Respects to you
and Mrs. Hewitt and he wishes you to give the
Same to Lones when you have the Pleasure to
see him. I had him at my House Spending
one Day with Us, when we Talked over a good
many Old Olds.

" I told you In one of My Former Letters that
he had Married Jackey Boon's wife who was
Killed Near Salamanca this Woman died about
16 years Ago And the Old Lady B now conse-
quently, is the .Second wife. Becket seems to
do very well at present keep a Grocer's Shop,
and sells Beer But not to Be drunk in the
house.

"You will give our kind wishes to Mrs.
Hewitt and Children. And May the Blessing of the

G 3

130 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Almighty God, Attend you and your Family in
all your Affairs, is Hewitt, the Constant wish
of your old Fellow Traveller.

" J. LEONARD.

" To Thomas Hewitt.

"P.S. Charming fine Weather at this time/*

Who shall say this is not an honest, hearty,
intelligent letter, from a common soldier to an
old comrade? Could the reader see the map,
as drawn by this brave fellow' s pen, he would
say, if he had a son in India, " I wish my boy
would pen me such a one." Should Leonard be
now alive, he need not be ashamed that it is in
the possession of the author of this book.

This letter has been introduced, simply to
shew that the man to whom it was written was
worthy of respect, though at that time in reduced
circumstances, which, alas ! were soon followed

THE SOLDIER S WIFE.

131

by a severe blow. News reached him from his
uncle at Hingham, that his father was dead.

This was a sudden blow ; and, as Hewitt had
not been in very good health, it occasioned a
depression of spirits to which he had never before
been subject. The loss of his little daughter,
Martha, might have predisposed his mind to
melancholy, and the falling off of the profits of
his teaching might have created unwonted
anxiety in any man of strong nerve ; and, when
such causes for grief are accompanied with bodily*
weakness, /the stoutest heart is forced to yield
to the common afflictions of human nature.
The death of a father, who had been a kind
friend to Hewitt, and for whom he felt the
deepest respect, was at this moment severely
felt.

"I wonder, my dear," said he to his wife,
" whether I shall receive any intimation from
any ot tne family to attend his funeral ? I should

132 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

wish to be there. It must now be known what
allowance he has made me, and how it is to be
continued ; perhaps I shall hear in a day or two.
If not, I shall go to Hingham, and hear what
my uncle says to it."

"We shall certainly hear soon, and as it is
near the quarter-day, some one will write to you.
I should not be surprised if something in the
shape of a legacy were left for you ; and it would
come in very acceptably at the present time.
At all events, there could be no harm in your
paying the outward respect to your father's
memory, by attending, even if unknown, at the
funeral."

" I shall wait a day or two, and, if I hear
nothing, I shall go over."

He waited, but each day passed and brought
nothing but increased anxiety. So off the poor
fellow started for Hingham and thence to
N .

THE SOLDIER S WIFE.

As he had been at the Crown several times,
and was known to be in some way or another
connected with the deceased, though the exact
relationship was not known, the landlord was
not surprised to see him enter his house with
a countenance of unfeigned sorrow.

" "We have lost the Squire, Sir," said he, " and
I suppose you are come over to the funeral. Ah !
Sir, he was a good-hearted, kind gentleman.
We shall many of us miss him, and the poor
most of all."

" When is the funeral to take place ?"

" To-morrow, Sir. Are you going up to the

house ?"
t

" No, Landlord, I shall take up my quarters
with you. I had a great respect for the deceased
gentleman, and have walked from Norwich on
purpose that I may see the last duties paid to
his remains. Who are his nearest relatives ?"

" He has none very near, that I know of.

134 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

His lady is living, and a sister of bet's lives with
her. There are no lineal descendants of the
Squire's alive. He has been altering very visibly
for some months. Did you know him before
you first came here, Sir ?"

" I knew him when I was a boy, landlord, and
have received from him many personal kind-
nesses, and I think he had a great regard for
me. But he is gone, and I shall never forget his
kindness."

" I have no doubt many will feel and say the
same ; and I, for one, shall always feel respect
for his memory. Are you going to look at the
vault to-day ? if so, I will walk with you."

" I shall be glad of your company. I never

was in N Church. It will have a painful

place in my memory, on account of the occa-
sion."

" You speak very feelingly of our late Squire,
and I am sure he deserved your good opinion.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 135

Ah, Sir, we cannot live for ever, and wealth will
not keep a rich man alive one day longer than a
poor one."

"That I know nothing of. It must be as
God pleases ; His will must be done and not our
own. If you had been spared in as many scenes
of death as I have been, you would learn to
know the value of your latter days, compared
with your early ones/'

" Have you been in many battles ?"

" I have been in almost all that were fought
in the Peninsula, and have survived them twenty-
seven years. Wealth may not keep a man alive
beyond his time ; but poverty, with a large
family calling upon you for bread, and you not
strong enough to earn it, must make you so
over-anxious as imperceptibly to shorten your
days. It is pleasant to be able to leave some-
thing behind you for your widow and children/*

"Yes, Sir, it is pleasant to a man, perhaps,

MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

to be enabled so to do; but if not, I do not
see that he ought to let it shorten his life. We
all live by God's providence ; if we can do
no more for them ourselves, we can always
pray to Him who is a father to the fatherless,
and the God of the widow ; and, if we can see
with the eye of faith, L how provident he has
been for us, we ought not to doubt his care
of them."

Hewitt turned round with sudden astonish-
ment, looked the man earnestly in the face,
and said :

" I did not expect such a speech from a
publican. There is truth in that beyond the
power of any to gainsay. You have done me
as much good as if an angel had crossed my
path."

"I have only spoken an every-day axiom of
Christian life, and one which I have heard so
many times inculcated^ from the pulpit of our

. THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 137

Church, that, sinner as I am, I cannot forget
it. I see too many, however, who neglect their
wives and families for their own gratification ;
and, as far as in me lies, I have endeavoured
to convince those who frequent my tap too
often, that they are doing an injury to them-
selves and their families, for which they will
never forgive themselves at the last. You may
think it strange, that I should thus shorten,
as you would term it, my own profits; but
I have never found it do so. On the contrary,
no man comes to my house to drink more than
he ought, and I never trust any man to take
a pint without paying for it. I have not had
a drunkard in my house for twenty years."

"If every one did but follow your maxim,
we should find the blessings of God properly
used, and not abused. You give me much
pleasure. I am a man, landlord, who has ft
wife and five children : a pensioner, with two

138 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

sons in the British Army, and three good
daughters at home. I have been enabled by
industry to bring them \vp decently, and to
give them comforts which many do not possess ;
but I have found my pursuit failing me of
late, and I fear that it may totally fail. Still
I ought to be thankful ; but I fear that I am
not sufficiently so. But here we are at the
Church. It is a very fine structure; what is
the name of it ?"

" It is St. Andrew's. The clerk is now going
into the Church, let us follow him."

Hewitt, and the landlord of the Crown inn,
went into the Church of N . Their first in-
quiry was concerning the time of the funeral.
Then followed an inspection of the spot where
Squire H was to be interred, and many ques-
tions on subjects in which the general reader
would be but little interested. He may be
already tired of the heaviness, or, as he may

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 139

term it, prosiness of this chapter; but if he
has any taste for architecture, he should go and
inspect N Church. :'.-*<

It is a magnificent fabric, with a lofty tower,
built in the fifteenth century; the nave, aisles,
and chancel in conformity with the exterior
of the edifice, and the roof of the nave of
beautifully carved oak, ornamented with eagles,
with expanded wings. If he examine the north
side of the chancel, he will see a very elaborate
piece of workmanship, which some antiquarians
might write a volume upon. The upper part
is formed of curiously-wrought spiral work, with
arched canopies and niches, and in the lower
compartment there are three effigies of men
in armour, separated by three trees.

After much conversation with the old clerk
about the deceased Squire, in which very honour-
able mention was made of his generosity and
general kindness to the poor, Hewitt and the

140 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

landlord returned to the inn, and, as the ice,
which is generally pretty thick in this northern
clime, was broken between them, they melted
towards each other, and, to the great comfort
of the lonely traveller, he was permitted to spend
the evening of that day with this good land-
lord's family : a better specimen of an honest
old English inn-keeper, did not exist in his
day.

But the morrow came the funeral came : as
private as it well could be in a populous village :
but two mourners, and servants, and numerous
work-people. In the multitude, not one heart
more grieved than that of the British soldier,
who felt what he never revealed to any one
but his God. He saw the last act of friendship
paid to the memory of the deceased ; and, when
others had retired, he remained, to reflect awhil?
upon one whom he never, to his very last hour,
forgot. In silent thoughtfulness of prayer, he

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 141

saw the tomb closed up, and returned to the
inn, took a grateful leave of the good landlord,
and started again for Hingham.

No notice had been taken of him at the
funeral : he passed for a stranger, and as a
stranger conducted himself ; but he did not
feel as such. He had lost a friend and is
there a living man who has known what this
feeling is, and does not sympathize with this
honest man, returning from his natural father's
funeral, unknown by any, uninvited to it, but
with a heart satisfied that he had done an act
of duty, of which it could never feel ashamed ?
Every man requires a friend. May they who can
best feel for others, never be without this sup-
port.

142 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON",

CHAPTER VIII.

THE WILL.

ALL men who have any property should make
their wills when they are in sound mind and
body. They should never leave it to be done
at the time when a physician is called in, or
when they think they have but a few hours
to live. The man, at such times, is not only
apt to forget what property he is possessed of,
but frequently repents at the moment of death
that he has not done right, or has been too

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 143

hasty, or has given some wrong direction, for-
gotten some one whom he wished to befriend, or
left too great a sum for his residuary legatee.

A father of a family should remember that
he is doing the last kind act by his wife and
children, and, as it were, settling the claims
of all his creditors honourably in the sight of
God and man. And he should always have
this will made even if he should have to make
one on the 1st of January in every year. But
he should take care to have but one, and to see
the others destroyed. He may have two or three
copies of that one will deposited in different
places, but they should be exactly the same;
and made with a composed mind, a Christian
heart, and, as he would be done unto by others,
so should he do to them. The right disposition
of an honest man's property will always tend
to his composure and comfort.

Men never die the sooner for having their

144< MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

affairs in this life wound up, their houses set
in order, and all their temporalities disposed
of as they ought to be. These things rather
tend to lengthen than to shorten a man's exist-
ence. At all events, they tend to strengthen
his mind; and, as every one knows he must
die, and cannot tell when or how, so should he
seize upon the first tranquil hour of his life
to be prepared against his death.

"Very good advice!" many a reader may
say; "all very good; but " and this but
has so much contrary direction, that each may
find some excuse for not complying with it.
If, however, he should comply, or should have
previously complied with it, he will be sure
to feel a satisfaction in reading this page.

" Our quarter-day is- up, my dear," said

Hewitt to his wife. " I have been to Mr. M ,

and he has not received any order to pay me
my dividend as usual. Something must be

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 145

wrong. I am much disturbed about it. What
ought I to do ? I think I ought not to delay
my application to the executor. I will inquire
of Mr. M what would be best."

"You cannot do better. But do not be so
disturbed; all will, I dare say, be made right
at last."

Hewitt had a long interview with Mr. M

in his office; he strongly recommended him
to obtain a copy of the will of the late Squire

H , and he assisted him so to do. But, in

the mean time, as his necessities were very press-
ing, and delays might only add to his embar-
rassment, he recommended him to go and
obtain an interview, if he could, with the widow
of his parent. He might write a respectful
letter, stating exactly the nature of his relation-
ship, and requesting an interview with the lady,
or with some friend of hers. He thought he
would be quite justified in his application, as

VOL. III. H

146 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

it was impossible that she could be ignorant

that he, Mr. M , had constantly received for

many years, the quarterly sum allowed him.
It was, in fact, a mere matter of justice to his
family. He would give him a note, certifying
the bearer thereof to be the identical person
into whose hands the money had been regularly
paid.

"Do this/' he added, "and then let me
know the result of your application, and I
will give you my best advice afterwards."

Hewitt was soon again at the Crown Inn,
N , and wrote a respectful letter to the widow
of Squire H , stating exactly the circumstances
in which he had been left, and, with the utmost
delicacy, requesting her kind consideration of
his claims, and an interview with the lady, or
with some one of her confidential advisers.

This letter was taken up to the mansion,
and an answer sent to the bearer, that some

THE SOLDIER'S wiFfi. 147

one would come down to the inn, and speak
to the man.

The lady sent, accordingly, her housekeeper,
who, as all officials entrusted to settle a matter
off-hand, and to send the applicant about his
business, appeared before the dejected soldier
with all the borrowed consequence of her mis-
tress.

"Are you the man that wrote a letter to
my mistress, calling yourself the son of my
deceased master, and seeking for money at
her hands ? This is too old a trick to be
played in these times ; so the sooner you give
it up, and go about your business, the better.
My mistress declines having anything to do
with you. Landlord !" and she called the
landlord in, " this impertinent fellow is an
impostor ! He has been writing a threatening

letter to Mrs. H , to obtain money under

false pretences, and if you do not turn

H 2

148 MARY AN.NE WELLINGTON,

him out of your house^, you ought not to remain
in it. Ask him what business he had to dare
to send a letter up to my mistress at all 1 Your
boy brought the letter. I am sure you could
not have known what kind of epistle it was,
or, from your well-known respectability, I am
sure you would not have permitted him to carry
it up to the house ; and, most assuredly, had
I known the kind of person it came from, it
should never have gone into my good lady's
hand. She is quite upset by it ! Poor thing !
after her recent loss too, to have such an attack
made upon her by such a scurrilous tramp as
this ! It is enough to make her seriously ill,
landlord, and the sooner you get rid of the
fellow the better; if he will not go by fair
means, lie ought to be set in the stocks,
and then pelted with rotten eggs out of the
village."

Hewitt and the landlord heard out this despe-

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE.

rate-tongued woman, who, the furthe* slie wenty
appeared to be the more violent, and assumed
a character which she found no difficulty in
acting, as long as she was uninterrupted. She
went on with such eloquent abuse and such
absurd assertions, threatening so loudly the
stocks, pillory, gaol, transportation, and even 1
hanging though that was too good for- him, that
at last she came to a stand-still ; but not before
she had revealed the secret which the stranger
had never mentioned to the landlord. He saw
how matters were; and, calling to mind some
early, occurrences, and reports which he had

heard when he first came to N , he was not

so much surprised, though most deeply in-
terested in the case. He thought it best to
let Hewitt have the settling of his own affairs,
and he therefore kept silence.

The poor fellow, perfectly conscious that he
had written nothing to disgrace himself, gave

150 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

a pretty good guess concerning the voluntary
part, if nothing worse, that this foolish woman
was acting; and, with the calmness of a man
who had seen too much real strife to let the
tongue of a virago afflict him, replied with a
very simple question, and with such a look
of earnestness, that the woman herself began
to tremble.

' ' Landlord, you have heard what this woman
has said, bear witness to my question. If
she does not give me a straightforward answer
to it, I will then trouble you to put on your
hat, and walk up to the house with me. Now,
young woman, have you any message to deliver
to me from your mistress ? Has your mistress
sent me anything by your hands ? If you
have anything to deliver, do it at once, as
becomes a good servant. For I will never
believe that any lady in England would give
utterance to any such language as you have

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 151

made use of, when she has been most respect-
fully addressed, and cannot have been provoked
to displeasure. Give me your answer."

Confusion sat upon the official's brow, whilst
deep interest flushed the indignant face of the
landlord; but the soldier kept his eye intently
fixed upon that impudent countenance, which
now, fairly abashed and confused, displayed
the most ridiculous embarrassment. So does
a bombastic fool tremble before a wise man's
searching inquiry, and often confounds himself
in a labyrinth of shame, from which he is
compelled, awkwardly enough, to blunder out;
conscious that he receives what he deserves-
contempt.

" Oh dear me ! Yes yes ! I had forgotten,
I was to to say, that my mistress received
your letter, and would consult with a friend
upon the subject of your application. And yes
dear me, I had forgotten. Yes my mistress

MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

s you a guinea, and hopes you will be
satisfied."

Here, in a great flurry, she presented a guinea,
neatly wrapped up in wliite paper, as though
it had been a fee for consultation with some
physician. But Hewitt very firmly refused to
take it.

"Make my respects to your mistress, and
say that I received a promise that the annuity
which your late master allowed me, should
be secured to me for life. The quarter is
now due, and as I have a wife and young
family, I should be obliged to her to pay it
punctually. Pray tell your mistress, I shall
remain in this place until she sends some
more respectable person than yourself to confer
with me upon a subject of such importance,
I have sufficient testimonials with me to prove
to her the facts I stated in my letter; but
I do not choose to trust them with a person

THE SOLDIER'S WIPE. 153

who cuts so poor a figure as you do, for a
respectable or confidential servant. Take the
guinea back to your mistress ; and remember, do
not keep it from her, as perhaps you might
have intended to do from me."

With a toss of the head, and an indignant
stamp of the foot, she left the inn ; but
without uttering a single word. What kind
of tale she made up for her mistress's ear,
no one probably will ever know. Perhaps she
cooled upon the matter as she walked home ;
perhaps she thought better of the stranger she
had seen ; perhaps she was a little conscience-
smitten for her own improper speech : be it
as it may, she certainly informed her mistress
of the interview she had had, and that she
was unable to persuade the applicant to leave
the place, and mentioned also the subject of the
annuity. For the next day, after having break-
fasted with the landlord, and having been treated

H 3

154 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

by him with more respect than usual, a gen-
tleman called to speak with Hewitt alone.

This gentleman was a contrast, indeed, to
the unfeeling woman who had visited him the
day before. He was in deep mourning, and
in appearance, speech, and manners, was an
easy and conversable man. Hewitt found him
quite as firm and positive, as the former mes-
senger had been flippant.

" I am come by the desire of Mrs. H ,

to speak to you upon a very delicate subject.
You must be aware, in the first instance, that
you have no claim of relationship upon her;
in the next, if not aware of the fact, I can
assure you of it, that your name is not men-
tioned in the late Mr. H 's will, and that

you can, therefore, have no legal claim upon
his estate. I would advise you then, not to
trouble the widow with any importunities, as
I know she will not listen to them."

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. . 155

"Are you aware, Sir, that I have had a
quarterly allowance for the last twenty years,
or nearly so ? that this letter to the agent,
who has hitherto paid me the same, contains
a promise of its being paid punctually during
my life ? that these letters certify the dates
of payment, these the acknowledgment of my
claims upon him for support, and these the
character of the poor man who now addresses
you?"

" May I look at those letters ? Would you
permit me to make an extract or two ?"

" Most assuredly, if you please. I hope they
will convince you that I am not seeking to
impose upon you any fictitious tale. You will
find that is from an alderman of Norwich, who
was well acquainted with my deceased parent;
and this, Sir, is that parent's reply. I ask
you, as an honest man, if you can say that
I have no claim upon the estate of my parent ?"

156 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

"I do not see that any of these letters give
you any legal claim to the consideration of
the executors of the deceased. They fully admit
the natural claims which you assert, and beyond
all doubt prove much aifection for you, and,
at the same time, are highly creditable to your-
self; but I do not see that they afford you
any pretext for calling upon the widow to fulfil
any engagement not expressed in the will of
the deceased. I do not see how I could re-
commend her to admit a claim which has no
legal authority to establish it."

" What you say, Sir, may be very true, as
far as law is concerned; but do you not see
the admission, that the allowance was to be
for my life ? And is it too much to expect
that a widow should fulfil the intentions of her
husband ?"

* ( \ do not understand that his intentions
have been so expressed to his wife in his life-

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 157

time. And there is much in those very letters
which would induce me to suppose, that the
various sums which he advanced were in lieu
of any legacy ; and that what he allowed during
his life, he intended as the utmost he would
do for you. But, at all events, nothing is left
for you, and I am sure you can obtain nothing,
as you are even personally unknown to her."

"May I ask, Sir, for a copy of my father's
will ? Where can I obtain a sight of it ?"

"You can obtain permission to see it when
probate is granted, and you may obtain a copy of
it from Doctors' Commons ; but I can assure you
of its contents, and it may save you some ex-
pense if you will be satisfied with my informa-
tion."

"I think it so very extraordinary that no
mention should be made of my name in it,
that, for my own satisfaction, I shall certainly
obtain a copy of it. I cannot understand why

158 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

my annuity should cease, without any mention
of it."

" We have found a cheque, partly drawn in
the hand-writing of the deceased, for the then
coming quarter, which, though not strictly speak-
ing liable to payment, I am nevertheless ordered
by the widow to hand over to you: but you
must consider it quite as a final transaction.
And I assure you it is already considered such
by her. So that I trust you will importune her
no further."

" I am obliged to you, Sir, for this. I am
in no condition to refuse anything which was
intended for me by my deceased parent ; and,
however much 1 may grieve to have been so
strangely disappointed, I shall never cease to
reverence his memory. He was a kind friend
to me : I hope he is in a happier world. Pray
make my respects to his widow, Sir, and say
that I would not ask anything more for myself;

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 159

but if, hereafter, my poor family should become
distressed, and I be removed from this trouble-
some world, she would not reject the appeal
of the destitute, but befriend them; it would
be some consolation to the disappointed."

The gentleman left the poor man to reflect
upon his father's will upon his future position
upon his poor success ! He left him to
pocket his letters, and his father's last cheque,
half drawn by him, and completed by his
executrix. Did a word of disrespect to any
one escape his lips? No: a soldier, who had
marched over mountains and through morasses,
and experienced so many sufferings as he had
in the celebrated retreats of Badajos and Sala-
manca, without a murmur, was not likely to
complain, however much he might endure the
severity of disappointment.

He returned to his afflicted wife and children.
His good partner shared his misfortune with

160 MAEY ANNE WELLINGTON,

becoming fortitude, and only sorrowed to see
the silent grief which preyed upon her husband's
mind. She was as cheerful as she could be ;
and worked day and night to keep the wolf
from the door. Not all her industry, not all
the affectionate attention of herself and daugh-
ters, could lift up the head of her husband.
His strength began to fail him. His cough
became troublesome, and it was evident to those
who loved him best, that a settled melancholy
began to overspread his mind. Still, like the
occasional nickering of an expiring lamp, his
spirit would sometimes blaze up and shine, as
if he had received fresh vigour.

He saw Mr. M , consulted with him, ob-
tained a copy of his father's last will and
testament, brooded over it, found that it was
dated the 18th of December, 1818, when he
was with his regiment in Australia, and grieved
deeply grieved to think that owing to the

, THE SOLDIERS WfFE. 161

miscarriage of all his letters, that father should
have thought him dead! and when he found
him alive, and was reconciled to him, that he
should have left him penniless !

That copy of the will now lies before the
author of this work, and will form a subject
for reflection in a future chapter. Alas ! the
real sufferings of life, if simply narrated, are
more touching than all the fictions of fancy,
or the visions of romance. May they produce
patience, increase faith, hope, and charity in
those who read them and all will be the better
for their instruction.

162 MAEY ANNE WELLINGTON,

CHAPTER IX.

DOMESTIC ANXIETIES.

DOMESTIC anxieties will weigh down the
spirits of the bravest soldier, if accompanied by un-
expected embarrassments. Still, they ought not
to overwhelm any man who does not bring them
upon himself by guilty conduct. Health must
decay sorrow every man is heir to misfor-
tunes and afflictions visit the best of men ; but
integrity, integrity will bear him up against all
the reproaches of men, though he cannot answer

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 163

one word to his God, in whose sight his inte-
grity, however great, is nothing but filthy rags.
The greatest patience was required in the case
of the severest sufferer among mortals, Job,
He could answer every man, but he could not
speak a word in argument with God.

Our heroine had many a long and serious
conversation with her husband, who sinking
under his depressing circumstances, required the
cheering voice of consolation to lift him up from
darkness,

" I have looked over this will, my dear, and
I seem to be the only person* forgotten in it.
My father and I never had a word of dispute,
we never had a reproach between us, and here
see every body thought of but myself. Lega-
cies to the grandchildren of his uncle, legacies
to the niece of his wife, legacy to her sister,
legacy to a godchild, legacies to his servants,
legacies to the churchwardens of the parish for

164 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

the benefit of the poor, legacy to his executor,
and all the rest to his wife and: her relative^ and
with all his estates thus disposed of, not a single
penny to his poor unfortunate son ! Had I but
remained in Australia, this would have been
spared me; and you, my dear wife, would not
by this time have had the agony of being likely
to be destitute."

" Do not grieve, Thomas, about things which
are past and cannot be helped. If wrong has
been done you by any self-interested person, it
will not be long before a righteous God will call
him to account. But it is best for us, my dear,
to look upon the matter as an accidental misfor-
tune, to which all men are liable; and let us
treat it as such. We now know the worst ; we
must build upon our own future exertions. I
must endeavour to get the girls into some res-
pectable house of employment, and we must live
as closely as we can. You have still the pension

THE SOLDIER S WIFE.

of a British soldier, and I see no occasion ttf
despair. God tempers the wind to the shorn;
lamb. We may meet with friends, we are now;
not so badly off as thousands ; and, if I could
but see you a little more cheerful and more
thankful, I should be happy."

Let even a tender wife eay what she will, let
prudence talk with propriety, let reflection, and
argument, and strength >of resolution be sum-
moned, nothing but faith in religion can support
disappointment. A son who had never offended
a father a son who had honoured him with all
the respect due to him to whom he had ever
manifested the utmost affection to be cut off
without a penny, and to find himself forgotten,
must feel keenly, so keenly that nothing but a
dependance upon God, nothing but a Christian
faith which rises superior to all earthly conside-
rations, can enable him to bear the pang.. But

166 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

faith can endure such and far worse misfortunes,
and leave them all behind as so many momentary
troubles, not worthy of a single regret.

The good wife applied herself diligently to
the task of duty before her. Hewitt had occa-
sionally a call to some easy duty, and the children
were industrious to earn something for their
support. Our heroine applied to one of the
most respectable houses in Norwich. She
had an interview with Mrs. Taylor, the stay-
maker, of Upper St. Giles Street. She very
properly demurred for a long time as to the
reception of the daughters into her establish-
ment, because she had no recommendations of
weight with them. The very urgent and re-
peated prayers of the mother and daughters
united, at last prevailed. This kind-hearted
woman was touched with their earnest solicita-
tions, and her letter to the author of these pages,

THE SOLDIER S WIFE.

in answer to his inquiries as to their respecta-
bility, is very satisfactory to him, and he humbly
hopes it may prove acceptable to the public, as
another proof of the worthiness of those for
whom he has thus ventured to claim public
sympathy.

" 13, Upper St. Giles, St. Norwich ,
" Jan. 2, 1846.

"Sir,

" In answer to your inquiry of this morning,
respecting the two daughters of Mrs. Hewitt,
I am very happy in being able to bear testimony
to their good conduct during the two years and
a half they have been in my work-room.

' ' I must observe that they came under my
notice without any recommendation, and it was
only the persevering application of the mother
and daughters united, that induced me to receive
them as workwomen at all, they being quite

168 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

unknown to me ; but I am happy to say, I have
not to regret accepting their services.
" I am,

" Sir,

" YOUTHS very respectfully,

"ELIZABETH TAYLOR.

"To
" The Rev. Richard Cobbold."

They worked hard, as all sempstresses must
do, to earn bread. It takes a great many
scratches of a pen even to write this nar-
rative, and, whilst thousands are asleep, the
author, whose time is constantly occupied by
various duties in the day, steals from the night
some hours of sweet labour for the benefit, he
hopes, of others. But what are his labours
compared to those of too many poor females,
who, for the fashionable demands of the ladies
of the land, have to work sometimes night and

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 169

day. Stitch after stitch, stitch after stitch, with-
out cessation ; thousands, thousands, still thou-
sands of thousands of stitches; ay, neatly,
carefully, accurately done, or all must be done
over again, or somebody else must do it, and
after all, to carry home a small pittance for a
broken-down father and a weary mother !

Oh, reader, how happy we ought to feel that
some cheerfulness of conversation, some inte-
resting narrative, or, it may be, some instructive
lesson in poetry or prose, can enliven the tedious
hours of a work-room, where active fingers stitch
away for days, weeks, months and years, with
only a cessation on the Sabbath ; that blessed
day of rest to thousands who otherwise would
wear hands and heads to pieces in a very short
time. As boys or girls in a school are inte-
rested in each other, so are the workwomen in
one room, in each other's welfare ; and, were it
not for the natural liveliness of spirit with which

VOL. III. I

170 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

God has blessed the female portion of his
creation, many of these poor creatures, who
work till their heads, hands, and sides ache,
would, as alas ! they too often do, sink under
their incessant labour.

Not all their labour of love, however, could
remove the disorder which was gaining ground
upon the heart and constitution of Hewitt.
He was very fond of his children, delighted to
see them go out in the morning, hasten home
at noon, and come in again at night. He was
proud of them also, took infinite pleasure in
their society, and made them keep up their
reading, and their domestic duties. But with
all their work, they had a hard struggle. How
hard, God only knew ; but they did not flinch.
Yet they could not help observing the gradual
decline of their parent, whose constitution, from
various causes, began seriously to change.

The will was frequently his only topic of

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 171

sorrow with his wife. " I think, my dear," he
would say, " that if the Marquis of Douro knew
exactly my state, he might get me some light
appointment under government, to ease us all
in our affliction. My father's will is so unac-
countably indifferent to me, so unlike himself
towards me, that I never can or will believe that
his intentions were to leave me penniless."

"That, most likely, he did not intend; but
why should you afflict yourself with these useless
thoughts upon things you cannot alter. I think,
perhaps, the Marquis of Douro might be
enabled to do something for you; but I do
not think your health would stand much
fatigue. It is better for you to rest quietly and
let us work willingly for you. We are happy
in so doing, and I am sure our daughters apply
themselves diligently to the task; and we are
blessed in our children."

" Ah ! my dear, I grieve not to be in a better

172 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

position for them. I cannot bear to see you all
working for me, when I ought to be earning
something for you."

"You have earned it, my dear, and dearly
too. Your seven shillings weekly, is a constant
earning, with no loss for bad weather. So do
not accuse yourself of neglect."

" I do accuse myself of not exerting my powers
to obtain some situation which would somewhat
improve my condition ; and, if I live a month
longer, I will certainly draw up a petition to the
Marquis of Douro, and get it authenticated by
some gentlemen who know my case. But if I
must close my career without any help, then
God's will be done ! I must be content to do
as the good landlord of N says, ' Commend
you and my children to God, and leave the issue
of all things to His wise disposal/ }i

" That you should always do, let your successes,
or misfortunes in life be what they may. Only

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 173

remember how often you have inculcated better
lessons than I can give you upon your comrades.
Our dear old friend, Dan Long, would have
returned cent per cent for your instructions, and
Leonard would have cheered us in our affliction.
But think, dear husband, how thankful and how
satisfied we should be under the dispensations
of God, wise as they undoubtedly are, and good
as they are to us at this moment. Our sons are
in the army, our daughters are in a most respect-
able house; all are dutiful and affectionate
towards us, and we should feel satisfied and con-
tented. You may write a petition to our
member, but I fear you will make but a sorry
petitioner, and not be the more satisfied after-
wards. Come, my dear, let us put our trust in
Him, who has covered our heads in the day of
battle, and affords us the present peace, which
is good for us in affliction."

In such strain did our heroine frequently

174 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

converse with her sick husband, whose declining
health made all his affections for his family more
lively, while, at the same time, it convinced him
that his own strength was fast failing him.

He received his children, when they returned
from their labours, with more than common
fondness and interest ; always counted on their
return, and, though his increasing feebleness pre-
vented him from holding much lively conversa-
tion, yet he would always perform the last act of
family devotion, and give them his blessing.

He would never keep his bed, though his
weakness daily increased upon him. He would
walk out as long as he was able. He would
walk down to the Market-Place, ascend the
Castle Hill, and stand seemingly lost in medita-
tion, looking over the city and the distant hills.
The air did him good, as long as he could enjoy
it, and his soldier spirit loved to walk in that
airy spot, so well calculated to fill a mind like

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 175

his with pious thoughts. Nor did the soldier
forget his prayers. They were offered up from
that spot, as he used to tell his wife, with perfect
charity to all, and in humble thankfulness for
past mercies. On the Sabbath, he and his
family always attended the cathedral service, and,
in the evening, they enjoyed their father's con-
versation upon what they heard in the day.

It was after his last walk upon the Castle
Hill, that Hewitt returned with more than usual
cheerfulness. He talked a long time with his
wife upon the history of Norwich, its various
changes, sicknesses, distresses, and rebellions;
its great men in every department, ecclesiastical,
civil, naval, military, and scientific; and astonished
her with such an effusion of memory, of all that
he had read, that she was at a loss to conceive
how he could have retained such knowledge.
But he appeared much better that day than he
had done for some time, and in the evening he

176 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

resolved to draw up a memorial to one of the
members for Norwich.

That address was never completed; what he
wrote that night, now lies in his own hand-
writing before the author ; and, as it speaks the
calmness of the man's mind, and contains the
last words the brave fellow ever wrote, it may
not prove unacceptable to those readers who
have taken an interest in this narrative. It is
therefore given verbatim.

"TO THE MARQUIS OF DOURO.

" Most noble Lord,

" The writer of this memorial is an old soldier,
who has spent his best years in the service of
his country; and who has been, from a sad
reverse of fortune, proceeding from circumstances
which he had no control over, reduced to great
distress.

" He begs leave to state to your Lordship that

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 177

nothing but the greatest distress of body and
mind, could have induced him to take the great
liberty of addressing himself to one of your
exalted rank.

"Your memorialist states that he served in
the Egyptian army, under Sir Ralph Aber-
crombie, and in ten general actions under his
Grace the Duke of Wellington, during the
Peninsular war; and that his wife was present
with him during the whole of that war, and at
different periods, during the time she was servant
to General Hamilton, had the pleasure of waiting
upon his Grace your father, and that at other
times she was employed in the care of different
wounded officers, particularly Colonel Erskine,
who was wounded at the storming of Badajos,
and Colonel White, wounded at the battle of
Pamplona ;* and that she is the mother of seven

* This is the only discrepancy in the account. In the
foregoing part of the narrative, it is stated that it was at Vit-

i 3

178 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

sons, born in the 48th. Five died in that regi-
ment, and two are now serving her Majesty.

" Your memorialist further states that he was
finally discharged from the army in 1823, with
a pension of Is. \\d. per diem. That, being the
only son of a gentleman of independent property,

(T H Esq., who resided at N in this

county) a gentleman, my Lord, who was well
known to our two Members of Parliament for
West Norfolk, and also to Mr. Wodehouse for
the East, whose principles my father has ever
supported with his whole interest. That upon
my being discharged as before stated, my father
allowed me 30 a year to assist me in bringing
up my family, with the constant assurance
that it should be continued for my life ; but,
since his death, which took place now three
years ago, I have been entirely deprived of that

toria that Colonel White was wounded. Could it be at
both ? AUTHOR.

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE. 179

assistance by his executors. And, as the will
which has been produced and sworn to, was
made and signed twenty years back, when I was
serving with my regiment near Botany Bay;
and at that period, from my having no commu-
nication with him, was supposed to be dead,
my name is not mentioned in the will, nor is
there the least chance of my ever getting one
penny from those good people, who now have
nis property.

" Thus, my Lord, is an honest man, who has
been brought up under the stern but wholesome
discipline of a long war for I ran away from
school, and enlisted into the 48th at twelve years
of age by one stroke of bad fortune, deprived
of the means of bringing up his family, and
what makes my case almost too hard for
human"

And here the petition leaves off, either as if

180 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

the soldier wanted courage to ask of the great
General's son, the required assistance, or had
not nerve sufficient to finish the most afflicting
portion of his prayer. It comprehends, however,
the brief summary of these pages, and, to a
soldier's heart, will speak more forcibly, perhaps,
than anything else which the author may have
narrated.

From too great exertion, probably of both
mind and body, he was compelled to postpone
the finishing of his petition. He complained of
lassitude, and retired early to bed. Filled with
the thoughts of what he had been writing, or
with some presentiment of his coming end, he
spent a very restless night, frequently rising up,
and continuing in prayer and watchfulness,
saying that he heard sweet music, far superior
to the festival's most harmonious band.

( ' My petition, my dear, will be of no avail ;
I do not think I shall live to get it -presented.

THE SOLDIEB/S WIFE. 181

I hope God will take care of you, I pray for you,
and for our children, and for all men. I am
thankful, very thankful, that I rest in peace."

Towards the dawn, the poor fellow sank into
a soft slumber, and his wife and children did
not awake him in the morning. His daughters
went to their work at their usual hour, little
thinking they should never see their father alive
again. His wife was seated in the room below,
filled with many an anxious thought about a
husband whom she had reason to look up to and
love, for his devotion to herself, in sickness and
in health, in joy and in sorrow.

She was surprised to hear him getting up,
for she knew, from his general character, that he
was a man who seldom uttered what he felt,
without the full consciousness of its certainty,
and she thought he would keep his bed. He
came down stairs, looking very pale and very
composed; but there was a spirit within him,

182 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON.

moving his poor weak body strangely, and
preparing its wings to quit its frail, changing
tenement, and to fly away. His countenance was
benign, as he sat down in his arm chair, looking
first at his wife with love, and then at the clock
with anxiety. Time was no more for him !

" I wish the girls would come home, my dear ;
I cannot think what makes them so late to-night!
(though it was then but ten o'clock in the
morning) I wish to see them, and to bless them."
He put forth his hand, lifted up his head, which
fell back upon his chair, and the soldier's spirit
was gone, leaving all his domestic anxieties for
ever!

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW.

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW.

CHAPTER X.

THE WIDOW.

SELDOM do rich widows see performed the last
duties to the remains of their husbands. It
is not the fashion. The funeral service is not
for them, though its consolations may be great
to all who cherish the spirit of devotion with
which it was written. It is for poor women
to follow to the grave their lamented friends,

186 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

and to see that the last ceremony be decently
performed. There are exceptions even to the
general prevalence of fashion in this respect, and
noble women have thought it their duty, not-
withstanding the force of custom, to break
through that unfeeling habit of disrespect by
which common nature and common decency are
too often set at defiance.

A long train of mourning coaches, horses and
hearse, with nodding plumes, all conducted with
such punctilious ceremony that the undertaker
prides himself upon its imposing effect upon the
public; coachmen in cloaks, and outriders with
sweeping hatbands, passing, it may be, through
the gayest part of the metropolis ; the physician,
clergyman, surgeon, lawyer, perchance the heir-
at-law, or one or two male relations; with one
coach full of domestics, male and female, form
the usual demonstration of mourning for a great
man. But the partner, the daughters, the

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 187

dearest friends of the deceased, see the funeral
depart ; and, when the grave is closed over the
remains, and a handsome tomb is erected, they
may then visit the spot.

In a little country village, and among decent
poor people, the widow thinks it her duty to see
her lord and master placed in the grave, and to
join in prayer to God that when she shall depart
this life, she may rest in the same hope as he
does. Thank God, none are doomed to perform
any act of self-immolation at their husband's
funerals, as among the deluded, superstitious
Hindoos; nor does the writer of these pages
ever wish to see the mourner, heartwrung
with wretchedness, at the grave of her relative.
He has seen funerals of all classes, and, though
he detests pomp at such times, yet he honours
and respects the motive which prompts the
survivors to pay the last sad tribute at the grave

188 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

of those they loved, and he writes these sentences
for their consolation.

Our heroine, now the soldier's widow, parted
with many little things to see her husband
decently interred. She and her daughters, and
her son in the Coldstream Guards, with such few
friends as respected him whilst he was alive,
followed him with mournful hearts to his silent
grave, in the parish of St. Martin's, Palace
Plains, in the City of Norwich, and returned to
their humble dwelling to speak of their bereave-
ment, to talk over his memory, and of the
thousand good things which he had done in his
life. But what now must the widow do ?
She found her eyes growing dim before the usual
period of their obscurity; and she was unable
to do as she had used. Either from early care
and fatigue in the following her husband to the
wars, or from witnessing with sorrow his misfor-

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 189

tunes, she found that her eyes would not allow
of the same exertion as formerly. The very
bible print began to be indistinct before her,
and though with a very strong light she could,
by great effort, make out the words, yet for
the most part they began to present such
a mingled appearance, that she was compelled
to wait till her daughters could find time to read
to her.

She never forgot her duty of prayer, nor
her accustomed attention to cleanliness. Her
house was put in order; her daughters were
.her comfort, and all they could do to alleviate
her sufferings, they most affectionately performed.
But when the few things which a poor widow
has, are parted with, and the bills for her
husband's funeral, and her own and her daugh-
ters' plain black gowns, are paid, there re-
mains but a small surplus, if any, to provide
bread for the week.

190 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

The wolf now stared her in the face more
fiercely than in the days of desolation in Spain.
Poverty is a hungry wolf ever craving, and
feeding most cruelly upon those who are sur-
rounded with nothing but cares, vexations, and
distresses. His famished jaws look as if they
would devour anything; and truly, he stared
at the soldier's widow as if he would destroy
her. But she put her trust in God, and was
not totally forsaken.

Her pension was gone, and she had nothing
now but the exertions of her two industrious
daughters to depend upon for "her support.
Her youngest child was unable to earn anything.
She was admitted into the infant-school in
the parish, and was very kindly treated by
the Rev. Mr. Day. As if her cup of sorrow,
however, was not yet full, her eldest daughter
was taken ill, and she was thus deprived of
her strongest arm. Her landlord, the keeper

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 191

of the Ten Bells, who had known her so long,
was very kind to her, and so was his wife;
and, but for them, the poor widow would
have sunk under her depressing circumstances.
Mr. Yarrington was a very good friend to her,
and interested himself in her behalf. But, after
a time, these friends, who could only afford
temporary relief, seriously advised her to make
application to the Board of Guardians, and
her landlord spoke to the Relieving Officer in
her behalf.

"You must," he said to her, "make appli-
cation to the Board. However unpleasant it
may be to you, there is no other resource for
you in your affliction. I have given your name
to the Relieving Officer, and he will bring it
before the Board."

A Board of Guardians, though the name is
such a friendly, fatherly, protecting designation
for men to bear, is a formidable body for any

192 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

poor man to stand before. Guardians ! guar-
dians of the poor ! guardians of the parish !
guardians of the Union ! assembled on a Board-
day, at a long table, exhibit a very imposing
aspect for a trembling man, woman, or child
to behold.

" Must I go myself, Sir ?" said the widow.
"Do they require me personally to state all
the circumstances of my misfortunes, before I
can obtain relief? Could not you go for me?
They would listen to you. I wish I could be
spared this trial \"

" It is especially required, if you can go, that
you should appear in person. You have no
great distance to go, and our board is com-
posed of some of the most intelligent men in
the city : you need not be afraid."

The widow sighed. She sighed to think that
she must be reduced to this necessity ! Yet,
she thought of her children. She had now

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 193

no pension no allowance no means of earning
anything. She thought of her husband's career
of her double loss; and resolved to attend
at the stated time, before the Guardians of
the Union in which she resided.

She had but a short distance to go, compared
with that which poor people in large country
Unions have to travel. Who has not seen aged
females tramping through the mire and snow,
through wind and rain, in the bleakest weather, to
apply to the Board of Guardians for relief ? There
they sit, in one common room, with wet shoes and
stockings, and clothes drenched through, await-
ing the summons of the officer to go before
the Board. It is true some do not heed it,
for there are people who can feel no degra-
dation; but there is no shame in an honest"
man's sorrow, at being compelled to stand
before such a tribunal. The liberal inventors
of the New Poor Law think that there is no

VOL. III. K

194 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

kind of hardship whatever, in poor people coming
before the Board. Let but Heaven reduce any
of them to the necessity of having to make
the trial, and they will most wofully feel the
hardship.

There are many most excellent men among
those composing these Boards : in general, men of
education and business habits, are selected for
chairmen, and very often the best men in a
parish are nominated as guardians ; but the
poor law they administer is, even by the very
best Boards, acknowledged to be too severe. This
is not the place to discuss the merits of that
law, upon the administration of which, in mercy
or severity, must depend the well-being or
misery of the poor. The subject is mentioned
to shew that the Board is not, and cannot be
otherwise, than a formidable body for poor men
to apply to for relief.

In country parishes, who are the adminis-

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 195

trators of this law, but men for the most
part deeply interested in keeping down the
relief as low as they can ! And the law gives
them a very powerful arm to do so. Can any
one be surprised that they should exercise it?
The surprise would be, that they did not.

But our heroine was reduced to the necessity,
and she went; she had no alternative, but to
starve or do so. She sat down amidst nume-
rous applicants, till she was called in to the
Board-room. She entered, with a heart beating
violently, and limbs trembling till they knocked
one against the other ; and yet, as she entered,
every eye beheld a tall, straight person, in deep
mourning, with a countenance that spoke much
sorrow j but with an air of past independence,
that seemed now to say, indeed, " The wolf
terrifies me."

"Walk up here, Mrs. Hewitt/' said a voice

K 2

196 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

from the chair. " What is your application here
to-day ?"

The poor woman stood before the Chairman,
Vice-Chairman, and a numerous body of Guar-
dians, the Clerk of the Board, the Relieving
Officers, and the Governor of the House, and
had to answer publicly any question which
any man there present chose to put to her.

Severe, sometimes, are the cross-examinations
which an applicant has to undergo; and, not
always in the gentlest terms ; for there sit, too
often, accuser, judge, and jury, and the poor
man has but little chance of escaping the utmost
rigour of the law. Such, however, was not in
reality the case with the Board before whom
the soldier's widow stood, though, to her terrified
vision, it might appear as if she stood before
them like a criminal.

"What is your name? Where do you live?

THE SOLDIER S WIDOW.

197

What age are you ? How many children have
you ? What are your earnings ? What do your
children earn ? How long have you been a
widow? Have you any pension? Have you
no means of subsistence ? Are you able-bodied ?
Have you no friends? What parish did your
husband belong to? How come you to be so
reduced ? Cannot you do something for a liveli-
hood ? Are you quite destitute ?"

To all these questions our heroine made
suitable and satisfactory replies; and narrated
to the Board the simple account of her
past life, who she was, what her husband
was, and how he had died from disappoint-
ment and grief, at being unable to maintain
her and her family, concluding with these
words :

" I have been in most of the Peninsular battles,
with my husband, and have stood with the
soldiers of my country in the face of England's

198 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

bitterest and most formidable enemies, but I
never knew what fear was till this moment."
" Just go to the door a minute, Mrs. Hewitt."
And our heroine departed, every eye following
her, as she walked erect and firmly from the
Board-room.

"This is a most extraordinary woman,"
said the Chairman, "and her history is very
remarkable. I have heard, gentlemen, some-
thing of her circumstances before, though the
woman was personally unknown to me. I have
no reason whatever to doubt the facts that
she states, and I think some interest should
be made, to get her case reported to the
government. If we could find some one to
report to her Majesty the condition she is
now in, I feel persuaded some relief might be
obtained for her. A memorial should be drawn
up, either by the civic authorities, or by the
woman herself, and attested by some credible

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 199

witnesses. At all events, the woman is now
destitute. Every widow should support one
child, if able-bodied; but in this case, I think
there are some peculiarities which render her
a proper subject for the exercise of that privilege
which we possess, of administering out-door
relief. The daughters are of very good character,
and are working at a very respectable house.
The mother and child might be relieved out-
door, and, in the mean time, I will represent
her case to some influential gentlemen, and see
if any thing can be done for her. What relief
shall be given ?"

One suggested a shilling, and a stone of flour ;
another, two and sixpence ; another, two shillings
for the widow, and one shilling for the daughter.

"Well, suppose we allow three shillings per
week for the present ?"

And so it was agreed.

" Call her in."

200 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

"Mrs. Hewitt, the Board have taken your
case into consideration. They have been much
struck with the account you have given them
of your adventures, hardships, and dangers, and
they think that if you were to memorialize Her
Majesty, or make application to the Government,
something would be done for you. The law
does not allow us to do more for you, than
to grant you three shillings per week; but I
will not fail to represent your case to some
friends, who, perhaps, may be of service to
you."

The widow curtsied to the Chairman and
the Board, thanked them for their commise-
ration, and returned to her habitation in Bell
Lane, less terrified than when she left it.

In the mean time, her case was talked of
in the city ; exaggerated accounts got into
the papers, and her sons saw in the London
journals a long and erroneous report of their

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 201

mother's life. She was persuaded, however, to
apply to Her Majesty, and to the Queen Dowager,
and to the Duke of Wellington. She did so
by memorial, and, after strict inquiry into her
case, both among the magistracy and civic
authorities, the result was favourable to her
application, and, with characteristic honesty, she
informed the Relieving-Officer of the assistance
she had received, and gave up the relief from
the Board.

As the widow gave the author of her history
the names of the magistrates through whom
she received the relief, he trusts it will not
be considered improper to give, in this place,
the authenticated proofs of the accuracy of these
statements, for which he applied to those gen-
tlemen, and to whom he takes this public
opportunity of tendering his sincere acknow-
ledgments*

K 3

202 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

The first is from Sir William Foster, Bart.,
late Mayor of Norwich.

"Dear Sir,

"I am no longer Mayor of Norwich; but
with regard to Mrs. Hewitt, I believe her to
be a very respectable woman. The Queen Dow-
ager last year sent her five pounds. I tried
to get a pension for her, but failed. I think
it a case in which the Government, or Royal
Family, should do something. The woman's
husband and all her sons, served in the
army.

"Tour's faithfully,

"WM. FOSTER.

" Norwich, 6th of Jan., 1846.
" To the Rev. Richard Cobbold."

The next is from the Rev. J. D. Borton, one
of the magistrates of the county.

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 203

" Blofield,

" Jan., 8, 1846.

" My dear Sir,

" I have, for the two last days, been acciden-
tally prevented replying to your inquiry res-
pecting Mrs. Hewitt.

"About eighteen months ago, I received a
letter from a friend at the Horse-Guards, in-
closing a memorial .she had sent to the Duke
of Wellington, and requesting that I would
make what inquiry I could, as to the truth
of the particulars therein stated. I took, there-
fore, the earliest opportunity of so doing, and
had reason to think that her main statement
was correct. I saw the certificate of her mar-
riage at a very early age at Gibraltar, and
others relating to her husband ; with the medal

204 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

he had received for ten general actions, in
which he had been engaged.

" I heard also that she was a person of
respectable character, and that her daughters
had been well brought up, and were well-con-
ducted girls. Her sons had all been in the
army, and two of them were still living, one
in the Coldstream Guards.

" In consequence of this report, I received,
soon after, a request that I would draw on
Cox and Co. for 5, and give it to her. This,
I believe, was from the Duke's private purse,
there being no public fund of any kind for
soldiers' widows.

"After this, I received a request from the
Secretary of the Privy Purse for information
respecting her, and the result was 3 more.

" Since that time, I have not heard
from or of her, until your application respect-

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 205

ing her; and I fear this will not add much
to your previous store of information.
" Believe me,

" My dear Sir,

" Tour's very truly,

" J. D. BOBTON.

" To the Rev. R. Cobbold."

The letters on behalf of Her Majesty and
the Queen Dowager, are as follows :

" St. James's Palace,

" May 30, 1845.

" Madam,

"I am directed by Sir Henry Wheatly, to
acquaint you that he is honoured with the
Queen's commands to forward the enclosed Post-
Office order, as a donation from her Majesty,
with the expression of her Majesty's regret,
that the claims upon her Majesty's private

206 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

bounty are so numerous, they preclude any
larger grant.

" I have the honour to be,

" Madam,
" Your obedient servant,

"WlLBRAHAM TAYLOR.

" To Mrs. Mary Hewitt, Norwich."

" Marlborough House, Dec. 21, 1844.
" Madam,

"The Queen Dowager, having taken into
consideration a memorial which has been ad-
dressed to Her Majesty, praying her assistance
towards relieving your pecuniary difficulties, has
commanded me to send you five pounds, as her
Majesty's contribution.

" I have the honour to be,

" Madam,
" Your obedient humble servant,

"WILLIAM ASHLEY.

" To Mrs. Hewitt."

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 207

These donations for a time greatly assisted
the soldier's widow, but they could not provide
for her beyond a certain time, at the expiration
of which period, she had to apply again to the
Board, and reported her success. She was then
told that there had been no intention of taking
any advantage of the private charity she had
received, and, immediately upon her application,
the three shillings were again allowed, and have
been continued up to the present time.

But the reader may exclaim, how came the
author acquainted with her history, and to take
such interest in it as to give it to the public ?
Let the reader form his own judgment of the
matter. The courage of an individual, who
thought the extraordinary history of the woman
worthy of notice, has led to the present publica-
tion ; and, if the reader has been entertained with
it, he will pardon all the minor faults of detail.
The then Ex-Mayor of Norwich, Wm. Freeman

208 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Esq., addressed the author in the following terms,
in which he made no flattering allusions to his
genius, &c. &c., to induce him to undertake the
task ; but the very brevity of the letter, and the
simplicity of the statement induced him to do
as the dictates of humanity seemed to point out,
and he will be happy if his work satisfies public
expectation, and does but benefit the widow.

Norwich, 30th August, 1845.
" Rev. Sir,

" I enclose the memorial of a woman, whose
life I think would make an interesting volume, if
you would see her and hear her statements. Her
address is Ten Bell Lane, Pottergate Street just
below St. Giles's Church, in this city.

" I remain, your^s respectfully,

"WM. FREEMAN,
" Magistrate.

" Guildhall.
" To the Rev. Cobbold."

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 209

The reader may wish to know how it is that the
Queen Dowager has so graciously accepted the de-
dication of the work. The simple fact is, that the
widow applied again to Her Majesty in October
last, and, among other references, gave the name
of the author, stating that he had kindly offered
to publish her history, in the hope that it might
benefit her.

THE WIDOW'S PETITION

TO
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN DOWAGER.

" May it please your Majesty to pardon the
liberty I have taken in addressing you. I hope
your Majesty will not think me encroaching on
your goodness in thus appealing to you. I am
the widow you so kindly relieved last Christmas,
through the loss of my husband, who provided
for, and protected me forty years. I am worn
down with grief and hardship, and do not know
what resource to fly to. I have had the painful

210 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

necessity of applying for parish relief, which has
been worse to me than all the hardships I have
endured ; and all they allow me is three shillings
per week, for myself and youngest daughter; which
has almost driven me to despair. I hope your
Majesty will be pleased to take my case into
your consideration again, and the prayers of the
widow and orphans will for ever attend you.

Should your Majesty wish to refer to any
gentlemen in the neighbourhood concerning me,
I beg to mention The Bishop of Norwich, Sir
Wm. Foster, Mayor of Norwich, Mr. Freeman,
late Mayor, The Rev. J. D. Borton, Rector of
Blofield, and the Rev. Mr. Cobbold, of Wortham,
near Diss. The latter gentleman has kindly
offered to publish my history, in the hope that it
may benefit me.

" I remain,
" Your Majesty's Humble Servant,

" MARY HEWITT,

" Ten Bell Lane, Norwich,
" Oct. 25th, 1845."

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 211

This petition was sent to the author, enclosed
in the following letter from the Hon. William
Ashley.

" Marlborough House,
" Oct. 28th.

"Sir,

" Mrs. Hewitt having, in a petition addressed
to the Queen Dowager, mentioned your name,
as being willing to bear testimony to the truth of
her statement, I am commanded to request you
to state whether you can recommend her case,
as deserving her Majesty's favourable considera-
tion.

"I have the honour to be,

"Sir,
" Your most obedient servant,

" WILLIAM ASHLEY.
" Be so good as to return the enclosed.

" To the Rev. Richard Cobbold."

212 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

The answer to this letter explains the origin
of the author's acquaintance with the subject of
this memoir, and the request to her Majesty
concerning the Dedication.

" Rectory, Wortham, near Diss,

" Oct. 29th, 1845.
" Sir,

"In reply to your letter concerning Mrs.
Mary Hewitt, I believe her statement to be
perfectly correct. In September last, I received
a letter from the late Mayor of Norwich, con-
taining a detailed account of the life of the said
Mary Hewitt, and an invitation to have a
personal interview with her. I went to Nor-
wich, I saw her at Mr. Freeman's, and there
received her husband's journal, and her own
account of the various incidents of her eventful
life.

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 213

"I made every inquiry concerning the res-
pectability of the woman, and took upon myself
to visit her, at her humble dwelling in the city.
The result of all I heard and saw, was certainly
such as I thought might not prove unacceptable
to the hearts of thousands of Englishwomen;
and it is true that in my leisure hours I have
been preparing her history for publication, but
as yet I have not even mentioned the subject to
my publisher, or to any person.

" My surprise, therefore, was great to find that
the matter had been mentioned to our ever
beloved Lady, the Queen Dowager. Now that
it has been so done, would it be presumption in
so humble an individual as I am, to ask permis-
sion, through you, to dedicate the work to Her
Majesty ?

The maiden name of Mary Hewitt, was Mary

214 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Anne Wellington. I propose therefore to let the
title of the book be,

" MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,
THE SOLDIER'S DAUGHTER, WIFE AND WIDOW."

" Should Her Majesty wish to see the kind of
writer I am, I will simply state that I am the
humble author of a book, called ( Margaret
Catchpole/ which I dare say has never come
under Her Majesty's notice, I do not mention
this to puff myself or my works, but as the
simple truth.

" I have the honour to be,

"Sir,
" Your humble servant,

" RICHARD COBBOLD.
" To the Hon. Wm. Ashley."

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 215

To this letter, the following gracious reply was
received.

" To the Rev. R. Cobbold.
" Mr. W. Gillman begs to present his compli-
ments to Mr. Cobbold, and is honoured by the
commands of Queen Adelaide, to state that Her
Majesty will have much satisfaction in accepting
the Dedication of the proposed work, ( Mary
Anne "Wellington, the Soldier's Daughter, Wife,

and Widow/

" Gopsall, Atherstone,
" Nov. 10th, 1845."

But one letter more, and these pages will close.
This letter was sent to the Author, by his kind
friend, Page Nicol Scott, Esq., a gentleman uni-
versally esteemed in the County of Norfolk, for
his talents, his unbounded philanthropy, and his

216 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON.

ever willing and ready disposition to relieve the
miseries of the distressed. The author's first
introduction to this gentleman was so character-
istic of his genuine and unaffected Christian
manners, that he has infinite pleasure in record-
ing it.

The author was in search of a poor woman
who lived in some obscure court in St. Benedicts,
in the city of Norwich, for the purpose of con-
veying some relief to her from her parish. He
entered Hatchet's Office to inquire his way.
There stood a gentleman, a stranger to him at
the time, who looking at his watch, said :

" If you are a stranger, Sir, in Norwich, you
will have some difficulty in finding the place you
are inquiring for. I think I have time ! Yes, I
have ! If you will put yourself under my guid-
ance I will shew you the place." And, offering
the author his arm, he led him through some

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 217

such narrow streets, lanes, allies, and thorough-
fares, as perhaps no city in England, saving Nor-
wich, can boast of, in these days of progressive im-
provement in roads, streets, and cities. This kind-
hearted man was Page Nicol Scott, Esq., who
from that day, became no more a stranger to
him, but one whom the Author is proud to call
his friend. From him he received the following
letter, which, as it refers to the heroine of this
work, may, by its insertion here, obtain pardon
for the foregoing anecdote.

Norwich, 4th May, 1846.

" My dear Sir,

" As I have heard that your friend, the Rev.
Richard Cobbold, is about to write the history of
Mary Anne Wellington (Hewitt), I beg to inform
you, I was for many years Barrack Master at

VOL. III. L

218 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON,

Gibraltar, and had the honour to be acquainted
with the late Colonel White and officers of the
48th regiment, in which this poor woman
was with her husband. Having heard her history
as related to me by herself, I can certify that
she is not an impostor. You have my entire
consent to make this communication to the Rev.
R. Cobbold,

" And believe me to remain,

" Dear Sir,
<f Tour's most truly,

" RICHARD HOCKINGS,

" Barrack Master,

" To P. N. Scott, Esq. " Norwich.

" Norwich."

Thus, reader, are all matters concerning the
droduction of the narrative, now laid before you.
Every word has been read to the widow and her
daughters, who still live in their very humble

THE SOLDIER'S WIDOW. 219

dwelling in the city of Norwich.* Should the
author be the honoured instrument of conveying
a blessing to her roof, by this narrative of her
adventures, he will be thankful to Him who has
permitted him to be such.

In that narrow dwelling, no doubt, he has
already been looked upon as a messenger of
comfort to the widow and her children ; and, if
he has done no other good, he has at least con-
vinced her that God raises up friends to the
destitute, if they will only trust in Him, even at
the moment of their utmost distress ; and proved
to her the truth of this Divine instruction, given

* The direction now is, (and it is necessary to be particular,
on account of others of the same name residing in the same
place )

Mrs, MARY ANNB HEWITT,

St. Gile's Gates, Grapes Hill,

The last Cottage in Salmon's Row,
Norwich.

220 MARY ANNE WELLINGTON.

to all who will receive it, that

" Pure religion and undefiled before God and
the Father is this : To visit the fatherless and
widows in their affliction, and to keep himself
unspotted from the world."*

* The Author cannot close this account without offering
his thanks to many ladies and gentlemen hi Norwich and its
vicinity, who have so kindly visited the Widow and her daugh-
ters, and reported to him the interesting satisfaction they have
experienced at the interview.

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 221

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

A SUPPLEMENTARY chapter is sometimes better
than an introductory one ; for those who pass
over a preface or introduction, to get at once to
the narrative, when at the end of it, seldom like
the trouble of turning back to learn the circum-
stances which have led to the publication of the
work. These, however, the reader may say, have
already been sufficiently explained. If such be
the case, and he fully understands the motives
of the author, it would be unreasonable to ask
him to proceed. Possibly, what follows, may

222 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

contain nothing entertaining, nothing strange,
nothing even diversified from the common run of
things ; and yet it may be found neither out of
character with the preceding portion of the work'
nor unimportant in forming a proper estimate of it.
The writer is persuaded that no subject is so
entertaining to man, as the true history of man.
Romance may picture strange adventures, and
create much momentary excitement ; yet, if truth
be painted in the vivid colours of nature, it will
prove much more attractive, and be far more
permanent in its impressions.

"One half the world knows very little how the
other half lives." Historians give but the public
events of times past, as connected with the great
men of the age. Even biographical sketches are
often confined to the deeds of heroes or politi-
cians, while the true feeling and spirit of their
adventures are but half told. It is the same in
the historical remains of ancient countries. We

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 223

know something of the customs of Egypt by the
painted hieroglyphics on her tombs; and we
can form a tolerably correct idea of the elegan-
cies of Etruria, from the beautiful drawings upon
he sepulchral vases found there. Respecting
he latter, Mrs. Hamilton Gray's ten thou-
sand ingenious conjectures, the result of her
visit to Tarquinia, may not be entirely without
heir value; but, had she discovered a MS.
letter, had she found a book, anything which
could have spoken in words, concerning the
events and feelings of an age so long passed
away, how infinitely more valuable and enter-
taining would it be considered !

Maitland's " Church in the Catacombs," also
brings forward many proofs of the simplicity and
truth of the early Christians, the steadfastness of
their faith, and their indifference to death ; but
how very little do we know of their lives, conver-
sations, and domestic habits. We learn their

224 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

sufferings from history; from no source do we
gain sufficient information of their social inter-
course. Yet, if the record of the life of but one
of those early Christians could be found, with
his feelings transcribed, his conversion duly,
recorded, the incidents which led him to think,
speak, and confess, properly related, what an
interesting book it would be.

Hence it is that the Scriptures, upon which
is founded our holy Religion, and which give
the life of Christ, his conversations, and his
deeds, fill the soul with admiration; and will
remain, till time itself shall cease, the most
engaging narrative that man can read. The
deeper man is interested therein, the wiser will he
become ; the better, happier and holier, because
he must perceive the immeasurable distance there
is between the words, the life, the actions, and
the death of every other man, when compared
with His.

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 225

It is not the intention of the author to make
his supplementary chapter a sermon. In his
lonely country village, he sometimes thinks of
the public events of the days in which he has
lived; and, though he may have seen strange
things even in the course of his quiet stream of
life, he feels that the record of some of the
incidents of those stirring times in which the
soldiers of his country bore so conspicuous a
part, may not prove uninstructive to his
readers.

The common soldier is not a mere machine,
as the foregoing pages must have proved. Little
is ever heard of his career in the ranks,
as little of his name, or exploits, unless some
very prominent event has made him unusually
conspicuous; and, most assuredly, hut for the
superior intelligence of the soldier whose
career is traced in these pages, his steady con-
duct, his talent, industry, and thoughtfulness
in keeping a record of the feelings and events of

226 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

his time, his history and that of his wife and
widow would not have been better known than
that of his comrades.

He lived in dreadful times. Carnage never
stained the sword a deeper red earth never
witnessed such a succession of bloody contests,
such a devastating scourge. God grant we may
never have such scenes again ! The vices of men,
however, must be subdued one way or another.
Oh ! would they were so, by the sword of the
Spirit, the word of Love, rather than by the sword
of vengeance. The severe discipline exercised in
the army during the war, had it had but the effect
of restraining the enormities of vice at the
moment of victory, might have been a blessing ;
but it was mainly for the purpose of keeping the
soldiers prepared for battle ; and, when victory
was gained, too often the vilest passions burst
through every restraint.

Under any circumstances, public flogging is a
detestable sight ; but, carried to the length it is in

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 227

the British army, it is horrible. Drunken-
ness in a private soldier is visited with
the lash. It is a great crime, and there is
no lash, of any number of thongs, which
can make atonement for a drunkard. The
soldier is flogged, he is stripped before his
comrades, his commanding officer is near him,
the surgeon is present, just to say how much,
without danger of death, the man can bear. As
if the disgrace of a few lashes were not as effec-
tual as when the flesh is deadened by the repe-
tition of blows; or the moral degradation of
exposure not enough, until the punishment comes
within an inch of death.

The common soldier is thus punished for
drinking. It is an abominable vice; but the
man who has suffered the lash for it, thinks the
crime atoned for. Pray what does the officer,
whose province it is to set the men under
his command a good example, deserve, when

228 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

seen staggering into his barracks, led by a few of
his less inebriated brother officers to bed; the
victim of some jovial carouse, where, amidst
spirits as high and wild as his own, he has felt
himself obliged to conform to the rules of the
society of which he is a member ?

Is the gallant officer led up to the halberts ?
,If the private deserve one hundred lashes, what
amount of stripes ought to be accorded to the
man who commands him, if he be guilty of the
same offence ? He is a man of education a
man who knows better a man who ought to
have a higher character ! But, and this is the
great argument, he is a man of tenderer skin ',
and, therefore, whenever he has disgraced himself
more flagrantly than usual, is quietly permitted
to sell out, or dismissed the service !

Flogging is a horrible system, and answers as
little in the army, as it does anywhere else.
Carried to the extent it is, it must soon be put

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 229

a stop to. If man is not treated as a moral
agent, there is no corporal punishment that
will ever reform him. The army is but a
school of discipline, preparatory to future action j
like a school of education, wherein boys are
prepared for entering upon the duties of life.

Reader, take the following narrative as a
solemn fact. It may serve to show how cruelty
degrades the energies of the human mind, and
how kindness and forbearance elevate and en-
courage them ; how high-spirited genius may be
crushed by severity, and encouraged by gene-
rosity. Read, and you will not wonder that
flogging should be detested by the author of
these pages.

At seven years old, Timidus was sent to one of
the public schools of England. He was a boy of
nervous disposition, lively in his play-hours, but
not particularly bright in school. He had been
accustomed to kind parental and instructive

230 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

discipline at home ; and, at seven years old, knew
more of history, sacred and profane, than he did
at twenty. Nevertheless, he must buckle down
to the discipline of the Grammar-School verbs,
substantives, syntax and prosody, must be learnt.
He boards with an English master, and goes to
the great foundation of Edward the Sixth, of
pious memory. Flogging is the system of the
school, and Timidus soon kicks under the
abominable lash, because he cannot do his
exercise. The little fellow has a very bad
character, for stupidity, and returns, vacation after
vacation, more ignorant than when he left his
ntelligent mother's instruction. The lady takes
upon herself, (ye good, dear mothers ! never do
the same) to write and expostulate with the
head master, and to express a hope that more
attention may be paid to her son. More
attention is immediately paid, the rod is doubly
plied, the lash is more perseveringly adminis-*

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 231

tered ; and the boy's agony is increased by the
cruel words thrown in his teeth at the time of
punishment., 'Your mother requested that I
would pay you particular attention P

You, who loved and love your mother, tell
me, was not this cutting a poor boy to the quick?
That boy's pillow was wet with tears ; a nervous
disease afflicted his body, and he became a stupid,
heavy-hearted, as well as thick-headed lad, and
was flogged by both masters, English and Clas-
sical, till he cared not what he did, how he learnt
his lessons, or whether he learnt them at all.
His affection for his mother, his reverence for his
father, and his love for his many brothers and
sisters, alone prevented him from running away
from home, and casting himself upon the wide
world a deserter !

Timidus was completely hardened to corporal
punishment ; he always expected to be flogged,
was seldom disappointed, and dragged on eight

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

years of such severity of discipline at that school,
as, had not God's providential goodness taken
him away from it, would not have left him alive
to tell his tale. Some cause or other, beneath
God's overruling power, induced his parents to
send him to a Grammar School in another part
of the kingdom. Heaven did indeed shine
upon him there beneath the smiles of an intel-
ligent, good man, who perceived the wreck of
intellect which remained after years of intolerable
tyranny. Timidus was soon sent up to that
master to be flogged, and might have deserved
chastisement as much as he formerly did; but
he perceived the disposition of the boy ; he knew
that flogging had been the boy's ruin he
touched him not. ' Go your way, Timidus, you
will know better one day !' Not once, but many
times, was the forbearance of this good man thus
displayed, his plan of conduct being fixed upon
a principle which he felt would never fail.

SUPPLEMENTARY 'CHAPTER. 233

Heaven be thanked, the voice of love touched
the heart of Timidus. He gained courage, felt
the fostering hand of protection, was soon
cheered by the reward ! (aye, after ten years of
degradation, with the reward of well doing).
He rose ! his books became his delight ; his
soul was gradually strengthened, his abilities,
his senses, his joyous youthful ardour, returned
to him ; he was afterwards distinguished for
his application, and lived and lives to curse
the system of flogging, and to say that, carried
to the extent that he has known it, it is con-
trary to Christ and his Religion ; let any man
produce, if he can, a stronger argument for its
abolition.

The present narrative does not present the
reader with any of those disgusting scenes
to which allusion has been made. Enough
of horrors may be found herein without the
harrowing details which stain the pages of

234 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

pages of our public journals in these times of
peace. Should soldiers read these pages, let
them not imagine that the author is desirous of
doing away with rational discipline. Obedience,
in whatever station of life we are, is our bounden
duty ; and, whatever sufferings a man may be
compelled to endure, he is a happy fellow, be he
whom he will, if he endure them patiently,
knowing that he suffers wrongfully ; and he is a
wise one who, when punished for his faults, does
not set authority at defiance, but amends beneath
correction.

The brave man who, after many years of
hardship, died in poverty, has left sons in the
British army, who will certainly read the pages
of their parent's history. They are both soldiers
from choice, preferring to follow, as many sons do,
their father's profession : they will make good and
respected members of society, if they follow the
even tenour of their father's career. Experience

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER. 235

has already taught them the pleasure of obe-
dience, in the respect they have gained from
their officers and comrades.

Nothing in these pages will, I trust, diminish
the respectability of their position. The whole
object of this work has been to shew the pro-
vidential protection of those, who, though serving
in the army, did not forget to serve God faith-
fully, and to obey the dictates of humanity.

Can any man have read the foregoing pages,
and not have traced therein the finger which
pointed to God-ward ? how providentially things
were ordered for his welfare who never deserted
his duty ?

It may be said, that enough has not been
related concerning the Soldier's Widow. Why
should more be stated ? It is enough for her to
know that she is such it is enough to know, that
she is living in poverty, after years of toil and
anxiety. If my readers would know more of her,

236 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.

let them visit her in her humble dwelling in the
city of Norwich.

The author's object in writing these pages, is
Charity. If he has elicited any sympathy, he is
thankful. If he has done any good, he is still
more so. And, if those in authority, and those
under authority, are satisfied with his exertions,
he will feel the less concern for the errors into
which he may have unintentionally fallen, while
bringing under their attention the history of Mary
Anne "Wellington, the Soldier's Daughter, "Wife,
and Widow.

RECTORY, WORTHAM,
DISS,
1846.

THE END.

I. OND ON :

Printed by Schulze and Co., 13, Poland Street.

13, Great Marlborough Street.

MR. COLBURN'S
LIST OF NEW WORKS.

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MEMOIRS OF THE REIGN

KING GEORGE THE SECOND;

BY HORACE WALPOLE, EARL OF ORFORD.

EDITED, WITH A PREFACE AND NOTES, BY THE LATE LORD
HOLLAND.

THE manuscript of tbese " Memoirs of tlie Reign of George the
Second" was found at Strawberry Hill on tbe death of Horace WalpoJe,
along with that of the " Memoirs of the Reign of George the Third,"
lately published by Sir Denis Le Marchant, in two chests, relative to
which the author left written directions that they were not to be
opened till a considerable period after his decease. That time having
arrived, the seals were removed, and the nobleman to whom the
Memoirs had been bequeathed (tbe Earl of Waldegrave), decided on
giving them to the public ; and that they might possess every possible
advantage it was arranged that tbey should appear under the editorial
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son of the ablest minister the age produced (Sir Robert Walpole) and
having many of his nearest friends and relatives members at different
periods either of the government or of the opposition, it is impossible
to imagine an individual more favourably circumstanced to record the
stirring scenes and great events that made the reign of George II.
so remarkable. But to these advantages must be added a talent in
portraying the characteristics of his contemporaries, and a vivacity in
describing the scenes in which they figured so conspicuously, in which
he is without a rival.

*' The intimacy which," as Lord Holland most truly observes in his

MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

introduction to this work, " the author enjoyed with many of the
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well deserving our curiosity, as it forms a transition from the expiring
struggles of Jacobitisro to the more important contests that have
since engaged and still occupy, our attention. " His account of par-
liamentary debates alone," he adds, " would be a valuable addition to
our history." On the same subject the author himself says in the
postscript to these memoirs, " For the facts, such as were not public,
I received them chiefly from my father and Mr. Fox, both men of
veracity ; and some from communication with the Duke of Bedford
at the very time they were in agitation. I am content to rest their
authenticity on the sincerity of such men. The speeches I can affirm,
nay, of every one of them, to be still more authentic, as I took
notes at the time, and have delivered the arguments just as I heard
them."

It may be as well to remind the reader that the reign of George II.
was rendered memorable by the dawning of the greatness of Pitt, and
the minority of George III.; by the struggles of the grandson of James
II., commonly called " The Young Pretender," to win back the for-
feited throne of the Stuarts ; by the opposition to the reigning king of
his son Frederick Prince of Wales ; by the remarkable trial and exe-
cution of Admiral Byng, and the no less celebrated court-martial on
Lord George Sackville; by the splendid victories of Wolfe in America,
and Lord Clive in India; the capture of Cherbourg, the acquisition of
Cape Breton, and the naval triumphs of Boscawen, Howe, Hawke,
Watson, Vernon, and Saunders. The most distinguished of contem-
porary sovereigns were Frederick the Great, Louis XV., Augustus
King of Saxony, the Czarina Elizabeth, and the Empress Maria
Theresa ; and in consequence of the interest George II. took in his
Hanoverian dominions, the English were continually engaged in the
war then raging in Germany, in which these sovereigns were involved.

These incidents are chronicled with a masterly hand by Walpole ;
and the reader will look in vain elsewhere for the spirited sketches
that enrich the narrative of the various actors in them at home and
abroad. In no other work can he hope so thoroughly to become ac-
quainted with the features of such statesmen as Sir Robert Walpole,
Bolingbroke, Pulteney, John Duke of Bedford, the Pelhams, the Towns-
hends, the Grenvilles, Chatham, Fox, and the other great names that
adorned the cabinet and the senate or of Chesterfield, Buhb Dodding-
ton, George Selwyn, and Hanbury Williams ; politicians, however,
who seemed to care much more for the reputation of wits than the
fame of senators, though they possessed considerable pretensions to both
characters. But the careful chronicler omits no link in the social
scale that may serve to characterise the curious age he delineates. The
result is a history which, with the veracity of a chronicle, affords equal
entertainment with the most vivacious romance, and though sufficiently
attractive in its own merits to all classes of readers, is essential to every
library containing any portion of the Walpole Works and Corres-
pondence.

HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY.

DEDICATED BY PERMISSION TO HER MAJESTY-

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LIVES OF THE QUEENS OF ENGLAND,

FROM THE NORMAN CONQUEST,

WITH ANECDOTES OF THEIR COURTS;

Now first published from Official Records and other Authentic
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BY AGNES STRICKLAND.

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MEMOIRS OF LADY HESTER STAMOPE,

AS RELATED BY HERSELF, IN CONVERSATIONS WITH HER PHYSICIAN,

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Second Edition, 3 vols. small 8vo, with portraits, &a, price 31s. 6d-
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THE LETTERS AND DISPATCHES OF

ADMIRAL LORD VISCOUNT NELSON,

EDITED BY SIR HAERIS NICOLAS, G.C.M.G.

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torian." Blackwood's Magazine.

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THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON'S MAXIMS
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BY G. H. FRANCIS, ESQ.
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THE DIARY AND LETTERS OF

MADAME D'ARBLAY,

AUTHOR OF " EVELINA," " CECILIA," &c.
Including the period of her residence at the Court of Queen Charlotte.

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LIFE OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR,

BY THOMAS EOSCOE, ESQ.

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LETTERS OF ROYAL & ILLUSTRIOUS LADIES

OF GREAT BRITAIN,
ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND;

Now first published from the Originals, with Introductory Notices,
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DIARY AND MEMOIRS OF SOPHIA
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acquainted with." Literary Gazette.

HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY.

HISTORY OF

THE CAPTIVITY OF NAPOLEON

AT ST. HELENA.

BY GENERAL COUNT MONTHOLON,
The Emperor's Companion in Exile, and Testamentary Executor.
Now first translated and published from, the author's original manu-
script. Two vols. 8vo, 28s. bound.

"General Count Montbolon, Napoleon's companion in exile, and tes-
tamentary executor, Las determined by detail and bonest statements,
to bring every thing connected with tl\is important event before the
yes of civilised Europe. We have read his volumes with intense
interest and curiosity, and we are eager to acknowledge the general
good sense, right feeling, and strong desire for impartiality that have
signalised them. They contain innumerable passages of interest,
amusement, and information." Court Journal.

THE ONLY AUTHORISED ENGLISH EDITION.

Now in course of publication, embellished with portraits, price only 5s.

each volume, in 8vo,

M. A. THIERS' HISTORY

OF

THE CONSULATE AND THE EMPIRE

OF FRANCE UNDER NAPOLEON.

A sequel to his History of the French Revolution. Translated, with
the sanction and approval of the Author, by D. FORBES CAMPBELL, Esq.

Having filled at different times, the high offices of Minister of the
Interior, of Finance, of Foreign Affairs, and President of the Council,
M. Thiers has enjoyed facilities beyond the reach of every other
biographer of Napoleon, for procuring, from exclusive and authentic
sources, the choicest materials for his present work. As guardian to
the archives of the state, be had access to diplomatic papers and other
documents of the highest importance, hitherto known only to a privi-
leged few, and the publication of which cannot fail to produce a great
sensation. From private sources, M. Thiers, it appears has also de-
rived much valuable information. Many interesting memoirs, diaries,
and letters, all hitherto unpublished and most of them destined for
political reasons to remain so, have been placed at his disposal ; while
all the leading characters of the empire, who were alive when the
author undertook the present history, have supplied him with a mass
of incidents and anecdotes, which have never before appeared in print,
and the accuracy and value of which may be inferred from the fact of
these parties having been themselves eye-witnesses of, or actors in, the
great events of the period.

%* To prevent disappointment, the public are requested to be par-
ticular in givinsr their orders for " COLBURN'S AUTHORISED EDITION,

TRANSLATED 11Y D. EoRIlES CAMPBELL."

10 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

MEMOIRS OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS;

Comprising the Lives of the Speakers and Eminent Statesmen, and
Lawyers, from the Convention Parliament of 1688-9, to the passing of
the Reform BUI in 1832.

BY WM. CHARLES TOWNSEND, ESQ., M.A.

RECORDER OF MACCLESFIELD.

Dedicated by permission to Sir ROBERT PEEL.

2 vols. 8vo, price 28s. bound.

" We have here a collection of biographical notices of all the Speakers
who have presided during the hundred and forty-four years above
defined, and of several Members of Parliament the most distinguished
in that period. Much useful and curious information is scattered
throughout the volumes." Quarterly Review.

WOMAN AND HER MASTER;

OR, THE HISTORY OF THE FEMALE SEX FROM THE
EARLIEST PERIOD TO THE PRESENT DAY.

BY LADY MORGAN.

Two vols., post 8vo, price 2 Is.

'Lady Morgan has imparted to history the charm of romance.
We have read her series of rapid but brilliant and vigorous sketches
with an interest which many a Novel fails to excite." Weekly Chronicle.

PRINCE ALBERT;

AND THE HOUSE OF SAXONY.

BY FREDERICK SHOBERL, ESQ.

Second Edition, revised, with Additions, by Authority. In one vol.

post 8vo, with a Portrait of the Prince, 8s. 6d. bound.
" The best and most authentic Work on the subject of the Prince
Consort and his Family." John Bull.

MEMOIRS OF THE QUEENS OF FUMCE.

BY MKS. FORBES BUSH.

Second Edition, dedicated, by permission, to her Majesty the QUEEX
OF THE FRENCH, and including a Memoir of her Majesty. In 2 vols,
small 8vo, with Portraits, 21s. bound.

" This charming Work comprises a separate Memoir of every Queen
of France from the earliest of her annals to the fall of Napoleon. The
Work of Mrs. Bush cannot fail of being a desirable acquisition to every
library in the kingdom." Sun.

HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY. 11

MEMOIRS OF THE BABYLONIAN PRINCESS,

MARIA THERESA ASMAR,

Daughter of Emir Abdallah Asmar ; from her Birth, amid the Ruins
of Ninevah, in 1804, to her arrival in England, in 1842. Written hy
Herself, and translated into English ; containing a Narrative of the
Persecutions and Destruction of her Family, on account of their ad-
herence to the Christian Taith ; of the Scenes she has witnessed and
the Trials she has experienced during her Residence in Mesopotamia,
Jerusalem, Mount Lebanon, Kurdistan, Ispahan, Teheran, and Schiraz,
&c. Dedicated, by permission, to her Majesty the Queen Dowager.
2 vols., small 2vo, with Portrait. Price 21*. bound.

LETTERS OF MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS.

EDITED, WITH AN HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION AND NOTES,

BY AGNES STRICKLAND;

And comprising Letters from the Imperial Library at St. Peters-
burg, the Bibliotheque du Roi at Paris, and numerous other sources,
Private as well as Public, now first published from the Originals.

New and Cheaper Edition with numerous Additions, uniform with
Miss Strickland's " Lives of the Queens of England," in 2 vols., with
Portrait, &c., 21s. bound. "**

" No public or private library can be considered complete without
this valuable work." Morning Post.

" The best collection of authentic memorials relative to the Queen
of Scots that has ever appeared." Morning Chronicle.

MEMOIRS OF THE BEAUTIES

OF THE COURT OF CHARLES II. ;

With an introductory view of the State of Female Society, and its
influence, during that remarkable Reign.

BY MRS. JAMESON.

Illustrated with Twenty-one splendid Portraits, engraved by the most
distinguished Artists. New and Cheaper Edition, with considerable
Additions, now complete in 2 vols. 8vo, price 45s. bound, or in Six
Parts, price 7s. 6d. each.

" Nothing is wanting to make this publication perfect in its kind.
We have the multum in parvo of the finest forms of female beauty in
the world the choicest excellence of England's school of portrait
painting the most masterly execution which modern engraving can
bestow, and an interesting memoir of each of the celebrated characters
thus brought before our eyes, by the chaste and judicious pen of one
of the most accomplished female writers of the day. The paper
and typography are of the most superior description, and the price is
moderate in the extreme." Dublin Evening Mail,

12 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

MR. BURKE'S WORKS.

BURKE'S PEERAGE AND BARONETAGE,

Corrected throughout to the Present Time, from the personal commu-
nications of the Nobility, &c., and containing all the New Creations.
In 1 vol. (comprising as much matter, as twenty ordinary volumes),
with upwards of 1500 Engravings of Arms, &c., price 38s. bound.

" Mr. Burke's '.Peerage and Baronetage' is the most complete, the
most convenient, and the cheapest work of the kind ever offered to the
public." Sun.

" Mr. Burke's ' Peerage and Baronetage' is certainly the most perfect
and comprehensive encyclopedia of personal and national history ever
given to the public ; combining surprising accuracy and important in-
formation, with the greatest brevity and clearness, and exhibiting, in a
condensed and lucid form, the lives and achievements of the many
eminent men, who have shed lustre on the rolls of our nobility, from the
steel-clad barons of Cressy and Agincourt, to the heroes of Blenheim
and Waterloo." Globe.

A Companion to the " Peerage and Baronetage,"

Complete in Four Parts, price 10s. Gd. each, beautifully printed in
double Columns,

HISTORY OF THE LANDED GENTRY;

A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the whole of the Landed
Gentry or Untitled Aristocracy of England, Scotland, and Ireland.

By JOHN BURKE, ESQ.,
Author of " The PEERAGE and BARONETAGE," &c., and

JOHN BERNARD BURKE, ESQ.,
Of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-law.

This work relates to the Untitled Families of Rank, as the " Peerage
and Baronetage" does to the Titled, and forms, in fact, a Peerage of the
Untitled Aristocracy.

" A work which contains curious information nowhere else to be
found, and to which professional genealogists may refer with advan-
tage." Quarterly Review.

BURKE'S DICTIONARY OF THE
EXTINCT, DORMANT, AND ABEYANT

PEERAGES OF ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, AND
IRELAND.

COMPANION TO ALL OTHER PEERAGES.

It should be particularly noticed that this work appertains nearly as
much to extant as to extinct persons of distinction ; for though dignities
pass away, it rarely occurs that whole families do.

Cheaper Edition, beautifully printed, in one volume, 8vo, containing
800 double column pages, price 21s. bound.

VOYAGES AND TRAVELS. 13

IIOCHELAGA;

OK,

ENGLAND IN THE NEW WORLD.

Sdited by ELIOT WARBURTON, Esq., Author of " THE CRES-
CENT AND THE CROSS."
2 Vols., small 8vo, with Illustrations, 24*. bound.

ECHOES FROM THE BACKWOODS;

OB,

SKETCHES OF TRANSATLANTIC LIFE.

By CAPTAIN LEVINGE.

2 Vols., small 8vo., with Illustrations, 21s. bound.

REVELATIONS OF RUSSIA IN 1846.

By an ENGLISH RESIDENT.

Third edition, revised by the Author, with additional Notes, and
brought down to the present time. 2 vols., small 8vo, with Illustra-
tions, 21s. bound.

" " Such books as the ' Revelations of Russia' are to be had only for
their weight in gold ; and I know aa instance where as much as
500 roubles (about !22/.) were paid for the loan of a copy." Letter from
St. Petersburg, in the Athenaeum.

THE CRESCENT AND THE CROSS;

OK,

ROMANCE AND REALITIES OF EASTERN TRAVEL.

By ELIOT B. G. WARBURTON, Esq.
Fifth edition, in 2 vols., with numerous Illustrations, 21s. bound.

" Mr. Warburton brings to his work an accomplished mind and
well-trained and healthful faculties. As we read, we are proud to
claim him as a countryman, and are content that bis book shall go
all over the world, that other countries from it may derive a just im-
pression of our national character. Our author sailed up the Nile,
beyond the second cataract, and inspected those wonders of barbarian
art in Nubia, whose origin is lost in their antiquity : visited the great
cities and monuments of Egypt, then crossed to Beyrout, made
pilgrimage in the Holy Land, and on his homeward voyage touched at
Cyprus and Greece. His volumes are full of just perception and
spirited detail. They greatly increase our acquaintance with Eastern
scenes, and to the traveller afford a variety of information which he
could hardly elsewhere find in so interesting a shape." Britannia.

14 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

VISC T FEILDING & CAPT. REMEDY'S

TRAVELS IN ALGERIA IN 1845.

2 Vols. with Illustrations, 21*. bound.

" Captain Kennedy and Lord Feilding appear to have visited every
place of note in Northern Africa; and the gallant author gives a most
graphic and picturesque account of their adventures, including those
among the wild Arabs and Bedouins of the desert. At the present
time, when the recent unhappy events in Africa have attracted so
much attention, we feel special pleasure in recommending this inter-
esting and entertaining work as one which throws much light on the
customs and condition of a brave but unfortunate people, and affords
much valuable information as to all that is remarkable in the country
they inhabit." Hood's Magazine.

RUSSIA UNDER THE AUTOCRAT
NICHOLAS I.

By IVAN GOLOVINE, a EUSSIAN SUBJECT.

2 Vols. small 8 vo, with a full length Portrait of the Emperor, 21s. bound.

''These volumes are of an extremely interesting nature, emanating
from the pen of a Russian, noble by birth, who has escaped beyond
the reach of the Czar's power. The merits of the work are very con-
siderable. It throws a new light on the state of the empire its
aspect, political and domestic it manners ; the employes about the
palace, court, and capital ; its police ; its spies ; its depraved society,
&c. The details on all these subjects will be found peculiarly valuable,
as the author has enjoyed ample meaus of observation and has
availed himself of them to the utmost." Sunday Times.

REVELATIONS OF SPAIN IN 1846.

By T. M. HUGHES, Esq.

Second edition, revised and corrected. In 2 vols. post 8vo, 21s.
bound.

"A very clever book the result of considerable experience.'* Ex-
aminer.

" As a picture of the actual state of Spain, this work is intensely
interesting. We cannot too strongly recommend it to the notice of
the reader. There is scarcely any subject of interest counected with
Spain and its inhabitants that the author has not handled in detail."
John Bull.

VOYAGES AND TRAVELS. 15

COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE CHINESE WAR, Sec.

NEW AND CHEAPER EDITION, adapted for general circulation,
Volume, with Maps and Plates,

NARRATIVE OF THE

VOYAGES AND SERVICES OF THE NEMESIS,

FROM 1840 TO 1843.

FOBSIING THE ONLY COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE WAR IN CHINA ;

Comprising also an Account of the COLONY OF HONG-KONG, and
Remarks on the Character and Habits of the Chinese, &c.

From Notes of Commander W. H. HALL, R.N., with Personal Obser-
vations, by W. D. BERNARD, Esq., A.M., Oxon.

" This is the most important publication that has appeared respecting
our late contest with China. In all that relates to the Nemesis espe-
cially, and to the naval operations of the Expedition, it is replete
with the most lively and stirring interest." Naval and Military
Gazette.

"This book 'is, in effect, a complete history of the operations and
results of the Chinese war. It is written with greater care than any
similar work we have seen. The author has produced a book of evi-
dently good authority, which clears off a quantity of misrepresentation,
and gives an altogether calmer and steadier view of the origin, progress,
and results of our warlike dealings with the false and flowery people."
Examiner.

" We recommend this work to all our readers who may wish to under-
stand the progress of this Chinese war, and to possess the clearest and
fullest narrative of the incidents which accompanied our victories. The
writer also made a long excursion into the interior of the Chinese pro-
vinces, and describes the country well. His notices of the imperial
court are also at once original and picturesque." Messenger.

" This is an extremely interesting and valuable narrative. All de-
tails which might prove tedious are omitted. There are no lengthened
disquisitions, no elaborate or minute pictures, but a constantly varying
recital which, with all the satisfactoriness of truth, has the charm of
fiction. If we except the old voyages of discovery, which carry the
mind over an unknown and mysterious ocean, where new regions are
every moment expected to develope their features before us, we scarcely
remember to have read any maritime relation with so much pleasure as
this. The Memesis, it is well known, acted a distinguished part in the
war in China, but the details are now for the first time accessible.
They will be read with pleasure proportioned to their importance,
and the simplicity and ability with which they are given. What
we have said will, we trust suffice to recommend to our readers
the Voyage of the Nemesis, which we regard as, in every respect
one of the best works of the class to which it belongs." Sunday
Times.

16 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

LETTERS OF A GERMAN COUNTESS;

Written during her Travels in Turkey, Egypt, the Holy Land, Syria,

Nubia, &c., in 1843-4.

BY IDA, COUNTESS HAHN-HAHN.

Translated by H. EVANS LLOYD, Esq. In 3 vols., small 8vo. Price

31s. 6d. bound.

" A charming book." Athenceum.

" We place this book in the very first rank of works of its class. It
is full of genius, yet softened by feminine feeling and sentiment."
Britannia.

THREE YEARS DfcONSTANTINOPLE;

OR, DOMESTIC MANNERS OF THE TURKS.

BY CHARLES WHITE, Esq. K
Second and Cheaper Edition, in 3 vols., with 34 Illustrations, from

Original Drawings, price 24s. bound.

" Mr. White's useful work is well worthy of the attentive study of
all who would know Turkey as it is. It may be safely taken as a text
book, with respect to Turkey, its people, and its manners. Full,
searching, complete, it will dissipate many prejudices, dispel many
vague notions popularly entertained of the much maligned Turks."
Morning Chronicle.

LORD LINDSAY'S LETTERS ON THE HOLY
LAND.

Third Edition, revised and corrected, in two vols., small 8vo, with

Illustrations, 24s. bound.

" Lord Lindsay has felt and recorded what he saw with the wisdom
of a philosopher, and the faith of an enlightened Christian." Quar-
terly Review.

ADYENTURES IN ^GEORGIA. CIRCASSIA.
AND RUSSIA.

By Lieut-Colonel G. POULETT CAMERON, C.B., K.T.S., &c.

Employed on a Special Service in Persia.

Two vols., small 8vo, price 21s. bound.

" Colonel Cameron had many facilities afforded him while in Russia
of seeing every thing worth seeing, and his racy manner of telling
what he has observed is sure to recommend his book to the general
reader. Personal adventures have a peculiar charm for the seekers
after amusement ; and they may seek with confidence in pages that
tell of that favoured region of beauty and gallantry that supplies the
harems of the East with the matchless beauties of Georgia, and in the
invincible tribes of Circassia furnishes an armed force that sets at
nought the gigantic resources of the greatest military power in the
world." New Monthly.

VOYAGES AND TRAVELS. 17

PETERSBURG^ AND MOSCOW;

A VISIT TO THE COURT OF THE CZAR.

BY RICHARD SOUTHWELL BOURKE, ESQ.

Two vols. small 8vo.

BY MRS. TROLLOPE.
In Two vols., post 8vo.

TRAVELS IN KASHMERE,

The Countries adjoining the Mountain Course of the Indus, and the
Himalaya, North of the Punjab, with Observations on the late Events

in Afghanistan.
BY G. T. VIGNE, ESQ., F.G.S.

CHEAPER EDITION.

Two vols., 8vo, with a valuable Map, engraved under the sanction of
the Hon. East India Company, and Twenty-two Illustrations.

Price 28s. bound.

'* These volumes place their author in the foremost rank amongst
the adventurous travellers who Lave explored the jealous regions con-
tiguous to the British Indian Empire, in the condition of which we have
reason to feel so deep an interest." Herald.

A JOURNEY OVERLAND FROM INDIA
ACROSS THE DESERT.

BY MAJOR AND MRS. GEORGE DARBY GRIFFITH.
Two vols., post 8vo, with Twenty-one Illustrations. Price 21s. bound.
" We cordially commend this work to the patronage and perusal of
all who desire to be informed of all that is necessary to be known of
the countries through which the traveller passes in proceeding to India
by the overland route. To ladies the instructions and cautions supplied
by this work will be really valuable." Globe.

EGYPT UNDER MEHEMET ALL

BY PRINCE PUCKLER MUSK A U.

Translated by H. EVANS LLOYD, ESQ.
In two vols., with Portrait, &c., price 16*. bound.
Orders should specify " COI/BURN'S EDITION TRANSLATED BY
LLOYD."

18 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

NARRATIVE OF A TEN TEARS' VOYAGE

OF DISCOVERY ROUND THE WORLD,

OF H.M.S. ADVENTURE AND BEAGLE,

UNDER THE COMMMAND OP CAPTAINS KING AND FITZROY.

In Two large VoK 8vo, with Maps, Charts, and upwards of Sixty Illustrations, by
Landseer, and other eminent Artists, price 21. 18s. bound.

" One of the most interesting narratives of voyaging that it has fallen to our
lot to notice, and which must always occupy a distinguished space in the history
of scientific agitation." Quarterly Review.

These volumes detail the various incidents which occurred during the examina-
tion of the Southern Shores of South America, and the Beagle's circumnavigation
of the Globe, and add considerably to our knowledge of Hydrography, Geography,
and Natural History, and of the Habits, &c., of the Aborigines. There will be
found in them the materials of two distinct wurks, embracing every thing worthy
of notice in the expeditions during a period of nearly ten years. The first volume
by Captain P. P. King, F.R.S., relates to the expedition under his command, with
an Appendix by Major Sabiue, R.A., F.R.S., containing discussions on the mag-
netic observations made during the voyages. The second volume is by Captain
Robert Fitzroy, and relates to the second voyage, with an Appendix, giving the
determination of many positions and measurements of meridian distances, and
other nautical information. The work is beautifully illustrated with etchings and
engravings on steel, by Mr. Landseer and other eminent artists, from drawings by
Mr. Martens and Mr. Earle ; and with Charts and Plans by Mr. Gardner and
Messrs. Walker : and an entirely new Map of South America, by Mr. J. Arrow-
smith, in which the position of places may be ascertained to within less than two
miles. In the volumes notices will be fond of the Cap"e Ver.i, Falkland, and other
Islands in the Atlantic Ocean of the coasts of South America, from Pernambuco to
Guayaquil of the Galopagos Islands the dangerous Archipelago, or Low Islands
Otaheite New Zealand Australia The Keeling Islands Mauritius the Cape
of Good Hope, &c.

N. B. Mr. Darwin's Journal of the Geology and Natural History of the Voyage
may be had in a single volume, 8vo, price 18s. bound.

NARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE ROUND THE
WORLD,

PERFORMED IN H.M.S. " SULPHUR," HI 1836-42.

BY CAPTAIN SIR EDWARD BELCHER, C.B., F.R.A.S., F.G.S.,

&c., COMMANDER OF THE EXPEDITION.
Published under the authority of the Lords Commissioners of the

Admiralty.
Two vols. 8vo, with upwards of 40 Illustrations, price 36& bound.

" Of these volumes it is impossible to speak too highly. We can conceive no
occupation likely to afford more authentic and important knowledge, or to yield
at the same time more amusement and delight than the perusal of the work be-
fore us. We are carried over every variety of the world's surface, and in lan-
guage, elegant, terse, and comprehensive, we are made acquainted with all
habits of human life with every phase of the species, from the rudest to the most
polished. Such are the attractions to the general reader of these most interest-
ing records. The authority under which the publication appears, is sufficient
warranty of its accuracy in science, and of its importance to the naval profes-
sion. To scientific or nautical readers, therefore, it is superfluous to recommend
it. We invite our readers to a perusal of this work, which we promise them will
amply repay any time and trouble they may bestow upon it. To the lore of the
scholar, and to the library of every house, it offers an equally necessary and
elegant edition." John JSull.

MISCELLANEOUS. 19

ELEGANT PRESENT FOR A LADY.

In One Volume 8vo. price 21s. handsomely bound,

THE BOOK OF COSTUME;

OR, ANNALS OF FASHION, IN ALL COUNTRIES,

FROM THE EARLIEST PERIOD TO THE PRESENT TIME.

BY A LADY OF BANK.

With between Two and Three Hundred Illustrations.

" This splendid book is a work of which every lady, at some period
or other has felt the want. It embraces a subject of universal interest,
and its varied and various merits, cannot fail to render it a most po-
pular and eagerly sought after acquisition." Court Journal.

" This is a very curious and very picturesque book, well selected
and arranged, and profusely embellished with wood-cuts, worked into
the pages, representing to the eye of the reader the characteristic
toilette of England from the Anglo-Saxon times to the century in
which we are living. It is a work which must please and interest every
class of readers. It is written, and particularly it is embellished, hi a
manner which renders it a suitable appurtenance for the drawing-room
table. Our ladies will here see, that though English beauty has worn
every possible dress through every successive century of our history, it
has never been such as to impair or overwhelm their native charms."

" This is a happy idea, very happily realised : elegance for those
who consider books as a species of elegant furniture interest for such
as take interest in their literary contents and utility for all who look
upon a taste in dress as one of the essentials of female ornament
which is equivalent to extending its usefulness to pretty near the whole
of the sex. The work takes a very extended view of the toilette, male
and female, not only for the present, but for all time : and has this ad-
vantage, that, inasmuch as physiognomy and figure have most to do
with the matter, the reader is here enabled to form a better estimate of
how the design would look reduced to actual wear, by the spirit and
animation of the numberless designs scattered over every page. In
relation, indeed, to the prevalent fashion of fancy dress balls, the book
seems to us to be not only invaluable, but absolutely indispensable,
since although most diffuse in relation to English costume from the
Saxon to the current time, it is sufficiently and picturesquely descrip-
tive of the rest of the British Isles, the whole of continental Europe,
ancient and modern Greece and Rome, Africa, and the great and va-
ried Empires of the East. We have derived considerable information
and amusement from turning over its pages, and recommend it as espe-
cially designed for the purposes indicated, with a wider interest inse-
parable from a subject confessedly popular, very ably treated, and most
artistically illustrated." Weekly Chronicle.

20 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

THE HISTORY OF MARGARET CATCHPOLE,

A SUFFOLK GIRL.

By the REV. R. COBBOLD, of Wortham, Suffolk.

Fourth Edition. Complete in one volume, with Illustrations, price

only 10*. 6d. bound.

''Truth is stranger than fiction. We have here a veritable history
wiih incidents more startling and extraordinary than are to he found
in any romance with which we are acquainted." Norfolk Chronicle.

'' Compressed into the compass of one volume, this biography will
probably become a standard work ; for, altogether, Margaret Catchpole
was sufficiently remarkable in character and fortune to take her place
among the celebrated personages of times past." Britannia.

DEDICATED, BY EXPRESS PERMISSION, TO HER MAJESTY THE
QUEEN DOWAGER.

Preparing for publication, in 3 vols. small 8vo, with Illustrations,

THE HISTORY OF MARY AH WELLINGTON

THE SOLDIER'S DAUGHTER, WIFE, & WIDOW.
BY THE REV. RICHARD COBBOLD, M.A.

Another Narrative of Female Adventure, from the pen of the Author
of 'The History of Margaret Catchpole,' will probably be received by the
public with increased interest, on account of the perfect truth of the nar-
rative being within the compass of any one's inquiry. In August last,
the Deputy Mayor of Norwich invited the attention of the Reverend
Author to the peculiar circumstances in the History of Mary Ann Wel-
lington, who was the daughter of John Wellington, one of the artillery-
men at the famous siege of Gibraltar. She married a soldier in the
gallant 48th, and accompanied him through all the Peninsular cam-
paigns. Her fortitude in the hour of danger, and her attention to the
wounded, were witnessed by many officers still living, who were also
aware of the extraordinary adventures in which she distinguished
herself.

Her husband died in 1844. The widow has since fallen into distress.
She is greatly respected by all who know her in the city of Norwich,
where she still resides.

Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen, Her Majesty the Queen
Dowager, and His Grace the Duke of Wellington, have all been tem-
porary benefactors to her ; and her Majesty the Queen Dowager has
most graciously consented to accept the dedication of her History.

The price of the work will be One Guinea to Subscribers, who are
respectfully requested to send their names and addresses to the Pub-
lisher, Mr. Colburn, 13, Great Marlborough-street, London.

MISCELLANEOUS. 21

CONFESSIONS OF 1 WATER PATIENT.

By Sir EDWARD BULWEE LYTTON, Bart.
Second Edition. Price 2s. 6i

THE ENGLISH GENTLEWOMAN;

OR,

HINTS TO YOUNG LADIES ON THEIR ENTRANCE INTO

SOCIETY.

Small 8vo, price 8s. Gd. bound.

"Every young lady may read this volume with very great advan-
tage, so excellent, so judicious, and so discriminating is the advice as
to occupations, studies, dress, amusement, behaviour, religious duties,
&c."John Bull.

SEVEN TEARS' CAMPAIGNING

IN THE

PENINSULA AND THE NETHERLANDS.

By Sir RICHARD D. HENEGAN,

Formerly head of the Field Train Department with the Allied Armies

under the command of the Duke of Wellington.

Two vols., 21s. bound.

" This is one of the best, by which we mean the most interesting,
descriptive accounts of the wild adventures and alternate scenes of
active enjoyment and severe suffering, which necessarily make up the
mingled web of the soldier's life on service." Messenger.

ELEGANT LITERARY AND PICTORIAL PRESENT.
One vol. 8vo, richly bound, price 31s. 6d.

EVENINGS AT HADDON HALL;

A SERIES OF TALES AND ROMANCES,

Edited by the Baroness DE CALABRELLA,

And superbly embellished with 24 Steel Engravings, by the first artists,
from designs by GEORGE CATTERMOLE, Esq.

" The most charming work of its kind that has been seen since the
birth of the annuals a work uniting more original genius, artistical
skill, and consummate taste in the pictorial department, with more
variety of literary interest, vivacity of imagination, and play of fancy,
than has marked any publication of its order from the dawn of the
species to the present day." Atlas.

22 MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

WORKS BY B. DISRAELI, ESQ., M,P,

CONINGSRY; OB, THE NEW GEMB1TIOS.

Fourth Edition. 3 vols.

SYBIL; OR, THE TWO NATIONS.

Third Edition. 3 vols.

CONTARINI FLEMING-ALROY.

2nd Edition, printed together in 3 vols., with a Portrait of the Author.
" The publication of a new edition of these two stirring romances
in three volumes , instead of six, is a rich boon to the admirers of
splendid and exciting fiction. Dissimilar as are the works in them-
selves, the philosophical reader will not fail to trace in ' Contarini
Fleming 1 ,' the germs of ' Coningsby,' and even of ' Sybil.' Wild and
impassioned, grand, magnificent, and sublime in parts, 'Contarini
Fleming' is an emanation of genius of a rare order." Naval and Mili-
tary Gazette.

MASS-TOUT;

By the Rev. G. CROLY, LL.D., Author of SALATHIEL," &c. 3 vols.
" This work presents a singular contrast to the ' Salathiel' of the same
author. But both are marked by the same kind of ability, though ex-
ercised on such widely different themes, and are in their spirit, much
more essentially historic than fictitious. In Marston it appears to be
Dr. Croly's design to place on record his impressions and recollections
of the last half century. The whole work has the spirit of truth, and
in its notices of the French Revolution, of the war, and of the politics of
England and Ireland, presents some of the most vivid portraits of illus-
trious personages, and some of the most magnificent pictures of memo-
rable events that have yet been given to the public. The varied
qualities of the work will insure it a wide circle of readers, and we
believe a lasting popularity." Britannia.

SKETCHES FROM LIFE,

By the late LAMAN BLANCHARD;

WITH A MESIOTR OF THE AUTHOR, BY SIR EDW. BULWER LYTTON, BART.

In 3 vols., with Portrait and Engravings, by G. CRUIKSHANK, &c.
31*. 6d. bound.

> " T}:ese ' Sketches from Life' are valuable additions to the library of
modern literature. As Addison and Steele reflected their own genera-
tions, so has Laman Blanchard in his Sketches mirrored forth the
variable and motley peculiarities of the present day; they have but to
be read to be admired. Let all lovers of our British essayists, all wor-
shippers of our Goldsmiths, our Lambs and our Hawkesworths, add
these three volumes to their previous collection. Sir Edward Bulwer
Lytton's memoir will be read with much interest." Sun.

POETRY. 23

IN SEVEN CANTOS. Price 6s.

" The Modern Orlando is by turns striking, picturesque, pathetic*
witty, and grand, and displays in all the true soul of genius originality.
Every one will acknowledge here the rising of a new star, destined to
move with brilliancy in an orbit of its own." Britannia.

POETICAL WORKS OF HORACE SMITH,

ONE OF THE AUTHORS OF REJECTED ADDRESSES."
Now First Collected, in 2 vols. small 8vo, with Portrait, 12s. bound.

THE HON. MRS. NORTON'S POETICAL
WORKS.

SECOND EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS.

In One vol., with fine Portrait of the Authoress, after a Drawing by

E. LANDSEER, R.A., price 10s. 6d. bound.
" This lady is the Byron of our modern poetesses." Quarterly Review.

THE NEW TIM OX:

A POETICAL ROMANCE.
Fourth edition, 1 vol. post 8vo, 6s. bound.

" One of the most remarkable poems of the present generation re-
markable in a threefold degree its conception being strictly original
its language and imagery new its tendency eminently moral. It has
beauties of no ordinary lustre ; the animus of the work is essentially
humanising, its plot ingenious, and its effect altogether bold, harmo-
nious, and original. No poem of equal length has issued from the
English press for a number of years, with any thing approaching to
the ability of * The New Timon,' it augurs a resuscitation of our
Bardic glories." Sun.

" The New Timon will bear comparison with any one of the poetic
tales of Byron ; and we say advisedly, justice will not be done to this
noble work of genius, if lasting fame be not granted to its author. Yes ;
' the New Timon' will become a standard study beside Byron. The
author has many of the first requisites of his art. His mind is elevated
and pure ; his diction terse, vigorous, and mellifluous ; there is thought,
ideality, in his lines; and, in addition, a quality which in these days will
be a great recommendation, his narrative is full of interest. There is
much, too, of satire, keen, caustic, and severe witness that on O'Connell.
In a word, we think ' The New Timon' a production which will Lave a
wide and lasting reputation." Hood's Magazine.

24

MR. COLBURN'S NEW PUBLICATIONS.

CHEAP LIBRARY OF ENTERTAINMENT.

Elegantly bound in Seventeen Volumes, price only 6s. each (any of which
may be had separately), printed uniformly with Byron and Scott, and
beautifully embellished with the Portraits of the Authors, and othei
Engravings, by the Findens and other eminent Artists,

COLBURN'S STANDARD NOVELS;

A Select Collection of the best Works of Fiction of the most Dis
tinguished English Writers, which cannot be procured in any othei
collection.

No composition of inferior or ephemeral character will be admittec
into this collection : hut those works alone which have received th
stamp of unequivocal public approbation, and which may be read front
time to time, with still recurring pleasure and profit, will constitute
the Series.

Sir E. L. Bulwer's Pelham.
Sir E. L. Bulwer's Disowned.
Sir E. L. Bulwer's Devereux.
Mr. Ward's Tremaine.
Mr. Smith's Brambletye House.
Mr. Smith's Zillah.
Mr. Lister's Granby.
Lady Morgan's O'Dounell.
Lady Morgan's Florence Macarthy.
Capt. Marryat's Frank Mildmay.
Mr. Hook's Gurney Married.
Mr. Hook's Sayings and Doings.
(First Series) ; comprising Dan-

vers, The Friend of the Family,

Merton, &c.

Mr. Hook's Sayings and Doings.

( Second Series ) ; comprising
The Sutherlands, the Man of Many
Friends, Doubts and Fears, and Pas-
sion and Principle.
Mr. Hook's Sayings and Doings.

(Third Series') ; comprising Cousin
William, and Gervase Skinner.
Mr. James's Richelieu.
Mr. Gleig's Chelsea Pensioners.
Lady Morgan's Wild Irish Girl.

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.

" ' Colburn's Standard Novels' present a series of those works ol
fiction that have most tended, with the writings of Sir Walter Scott,
to elevate this description of literature. This publication presents t
cencentration of imaginative genius." Globe.

" This collection continues to realise the most sanguine expectations
of that large class of readers, who, with ourselves, were anxious tc
have all the best modern works of fiction brought out on the plan
which Mr. Colburn has so judiciously adopted, and in which elegance
and economy are so happily combined." Sunday Times.

'' A truly popular undertaking. The series so got up and embel-
lished, and so cheap, must extend the fame even of the author 01
' Pelham.'" Literary Gazette.

" We earnestly press this cheap and elegant publication of Mr,
Colburn's on the notice of our readers, under a sincere conviction that
we are doing them a service." Scotsman.

"Thousands, and tens of thousands, will patronise this under-
taking." Kidtfs Journal.

" What an admiral opportunity is here presented to such as are
about to form a select library of fiction !" Sun.

Henry Colburn, Publisher, 13, Great Marlborough-street, London.
Agents : for Scotland, Bell and Bradfute Edinburgh ; for Ireland,
Cummiug and Furguson, Dublin. Orders received by all booksellers.

PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE
CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY